


The Boy Who Spoke In Hands

by Trucbiduleschouettes



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Adventure, Chara Being Chara, Chara is gonna have some redemption, Dad W. D. Gaster, Deaf Character, F/F, Family, Family Bonding, Gaster is a good guy, Gen, Gender-Neutral Chara, Gender-Neutral Frisk, Light Angst, M/M, Mostly Fluff, Orphan Frisk, Orphan OC, Pacific route, Undertale Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-26
Updated: 2016-09-03
Packaged: 2018-05-16 10:55:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 40,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5825851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trucbiduleschouettes/pseuds/Trucbiduleschouettes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dark, Darker and Yet Darker. Each time, Frisk killed more monsters before Sans finally stopped them. But after the third reset, things are different: Frisk isn't alone. Swan is another orphan who's guided by a mysterious ghost. Deciding to help the monsters from the Underground, the two kids will be challenged more than once during their quest.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue: And the kid who answered

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys!  
> Thanks for reading this fic  
> The Prologue and two first chaps were proof readed by the amazing TJ that you can find on tumblr: http://gryphonicaccent.tumblr.com/  
> For infos /doodles/ posts related to this fic, you can find more on my tumblr http://trucbiduleschouettes.tumblr.com/tagged/TBWSIH  
> Hopefully you will like this story. Don't hesitate to send me some feedback so I can improve and know what you think of it!  
> Enjoy!

Things had been strange lately, Frisk realized.

It wasn’t the orphanage. The building was the same old rotting ghost, trapping them all within its dark corridors and humid rooms. The nuns weren’t different either: haunting the building like silent shadows, ready to punish any disobedient child. And no matter what, Frisk was one of their favourite victims. No, it wasn’t the place or the other people that changed: it was Frisk themself.

It all began one early morning when they woke up covered in sweat and gulping for air, terrified but  unable to recall their nightmare. Then there were other, more subtle, signs. For instance, they suddenly developed an intense fear of fire, and refused to sit close to the refectory’s chimney even though the room was colder than a grave. Frisk had also been avoiding the chapel, as it made them nervous. The nuns caught them, eventually and the punishment was inevitable: the 8 year old was forced to sit longer than any other orphan at the end of the masses.

Less important but still odd, Frisk now refused to wear their blue jacket from last Christmas. No one understood this change of mind, as it used to be their favourite a few weeks ago.

Their odd behaviour encouraged the mischievous twins Tom and Aiden to pick them as the  new subject for their pranks, but they didn’t expect the quiet Frisk to show some resistance. That’s how the three of them ended up sitting in front of Mother Superior’s office. When the door opened and their name was called, Frisk’s nose was still bleeding a little from Tom’s little fist. However, their confidence from earlier disappeared as they entered the room, as the oldest nun was quite intimidating. Her hollowed cheeks and skin were so pale you could see their veins. She reminded them of a living skeleton.

Feeling uneasy, Frisk jolted as the door closed behind them. They sat gingerly in front of the massive desk, looking up at the older woman. Like many of her age, Mother Apollonia took her time to speak and instead regarded her charge with a weary look. After a few anxious moments, she finally addressed Frisk in a voice that was tired and deliberate, a hand wrapped firmly around her rosary.

 

“Frisk, my child. Do you know why you were called here?” The orphan nodded, aware that silence was the best way out of trouble in the Institute. Still, Mother Apollonia’s stern blue eyes seemed to wait for a verbal response. When none came forth from the child’s mouth, she sighed, shaking her head.

“Your behaviour lately has been questionable. Sister Margaret especially complained about it a lot. Today you get into a violent argument with your two comrades and yesterday you even blew out Marie’s birthday candles.”

“She was taking too long…” Frisk mumbled, nervously playing with a hole in their sleeve. No one could understand. None of them felt the pressure on their chest as they had, helplessly staring at the 5 flames, waiting for everyone to stop singing so that the girl could blow them out. The memory made the child shiver and they pulled harder on the torn jumper. The hole was big enough for their thumb to get in now.

“Frisk…” The nun sighed, crossing her hands as If she was praying. “If something happened to you, we need to know. You can trust us, even Sister Margaret. She might be strict but deeply cares for everyone here.” The old lady smiled, and Frisk relaxed a bit.

“Thank you, Mother. Nothing’s happened, I promise.” They said before frowning. “Will I have to wash the tables of the refectory then? Or copy lines?”

“For now, just apologising to the twins will be enough. And would you mind making sure Swan understood the classes from this morning? The poor child seems a bit disoriented lately.”

 

Frisk nodded. Like half of them, Swan arrived here a few days after his birth, entrusted to Mother Apollonia’s care by an anonymous woman. According to the nuns he had been a surprisingly tiny baby, barely able to make a sound. The only memento left for the tan newborn was a silver brooch. The jewel was shaped like the elegant bird he was named after, and was obviously the influence behind it. An uncommon name for an uncommon boy; it took two difficult years before the Sisters finally realized that Swan was deaf.  No matter how willing the nuns were to integrate every child, they were getting old, and learning sign language was difficult for them to take on. Some of the other children tried, but sadly their interest faded away quickly.

And then, Frisk arrived. Their story was sad yet common here: one night, a car accident, two lives taken and a child orphaned at the early age of 3. Old enough to be sad for months, but not old enough to clearly remember their parents face after a few years without looking at photography.

Once they begun to recover, they developed a bond with Swan and the two of them learned to communicate. It was refreshing to watch them try to imitate the signs from the book the nuns gave them. Five years later, they were perfectly able to understand each other. The Sisters tried to talk slowly so Swan could read on their lips, but sometimes the boy will miss some information and Frisk translated for them. The two of them didn’t have a lot of friends, but weren’t isolated by the other children. They just seem to enjoy each other’s presence more.

Dismissed by the Headmistress, Frisk mumbled an apology to the twins as they walked past them before heading back to their own bedroom. There used to be four of them sleeping there, but both Marcus and Alex had just recently been adopted. The dorm wasn’t the most comfortable one; located close to the ceiling with the old tapestries torn in the corner and the rotting wood showing. No matter how high they turned the heater, it never truly felt warm during winter. Frisk was glad they weren’t easily chilled. During the coldest nights, both Frisk and Swan would push their beds closer to share their blankets. It was also a way to feel less scared by the wind blowing outside like spooky ghosts, the branches scratching against the window.  Swan might be unable to hear the storm, but he always felt nervous by the game of shadows created by the trees during those nights, when the moon was full.

After what seemed to be a thousand steps, followed by two narrow corridors, Frisk finally reached the door of their bedroom with a grunt. Sometimes they dreamed of taking an elevator instead but money wasn’t something the Sisters bathed in. Rubbing their eyes, they finally lowered the handle but froze as they got inside, eyes wide open.

 

It was back. As soon as they came in, The Thing turned what were probably their eyes towards the child before vanishing. Frisk ran to Swan and grabbed their arm to catch their attention, heart beating fast in their chest.

“ _Are you ok?_ ” They signed quickly, and the boy bit his lip with a frown before bringing their hand to their cheek and twisting it forwards. “ _Don’t know_ ”, it meant. Frowning, Frisk sat next to their friend, arms touching. That had been the fourth time it appeared this month. The first time it appeared, Frisk thought they were having a nightmare and was still asleep. What else could have explained the presence of such a scary monster flying over Swan’s bed?

The second time took place during a Sunday afternoon, right after the mass. Swan had tripped and tore their jeans, so the two of them quickly ran to their room to get him a new change of pants. Frisk had felt their heart beat faster when the figure from their nightmare was waiting for them, sitting on the deaf boy’s bed. Frisk wasn’t one to be easily scared, but the situation was making them tremble from tips to toes. The ghost, it must be one since it was now floating in the air, had stared at them in silence before vanishing again. Frisk tried to talk to Swan about it later, but the boy was already asleep. They weren’t there when the Ghost appeared for the third time: Sister Maria had kept them to clean the classroom after the last lesson of the week, and when they came back later, Swan told them about their new encounter with the silhouette.

“ _It talks with hands, Frisk. It’s like me_.” Swan had explained, oddly calm about the situation. Even Frisk hadn’t felt as scared as normal children would be. Somehow the situation felt familiar, but they couldn’t say why…

Shaking their head, they brought back their attention to the present time and questioned their friend about what happened earlier.

Apparently, the ghost was already waiting for him as Swan came back to the dorm. The tan boy felt no fear, only some curiosity about the unnatural presence sitting on his bed. The ghost had invited him to sit at his side by petting the mattress, and Swan had obeyed.

 

“ _I asked why he was here. He said things went wrong last time, and he needed to make sure it will not happen again._ ” The older child signed and Frisk frowned.

“ _Last time?_ ” They asked. “ _What does it mean?_ ”

“ _He…_ ” Swan stopped, looking puzzled. “ _He talked about the Underground… The monsters’ world_.”

 

Frisk’s jaw dropped as they stare at their friend. Of course, everyone knew about the famous tale of the world of creatures living miles under their feet. A few weeks ago, Frisk even decided to go to the Mount Ebott to find the entrance of this fantastic land. It was as if something was pulling an invisible bond that linked them to the forbidden mountain. They had planned everything: making sure none of the nuns would spot them when they left, keeping biscuits in their pockets…

Yet Frisk apparently didn’t go. The last thing they remember was taking few steps outside the Orphanage, and then waking up from the first nightmare. Maybe they only dreamed of leaving this rotting place…?

A small hand covering their own brought them back to reality, as Swan had more things to say. Nodding to prove he had their full attention, Frisk didn’t yet notice the uneasy feeling twisting their stomach.

 

“ _He said that last time was… dark and things went bad. He said he needed help. Monsters need help. From you and I._ ” He finally revealed, before playing with his brooch. It was something he always did when he was feeling uncertain. Somehow, the gesture was enough to calm Frisk down and they passed an arm around their friend’s shoulders. Frisk might be younger but they felt protective of the tiny boy. Determined to cheer up the deaf child, they messed up a bit with the thick locks of dark hair, making them giggle. Making sure Swan was watching them carefully, Frisk spoke:

“ _Don’t be scared, Swan. I’m here to protect you._ ” They said, bouncing their chest with a confidence they didn’t felt. The older kid smiled but shook his head before moving his hands.

“ _Not scared. The ghost is. I can see on his face. He wants our help_.”

 

The black eyes were pleading Frisk to say something, to make a choice. It was always Frisk who chose for the two of them. Yet, the child hesitated. A month ago they would have jumped on the occasion to finally explore the Mount. But now there was this odd feeling inside their chest, like a distant siren warning them. Finally, they sighed before letting their left hand rest on their friend’s green jumper.

 

“I’m not sure, Swan. Let’s talk about it tomorrow.” They whispered, and their heart clenched at the obvious deception they could read on the boy’s face. And it only got worse as Swan gave them a pout before signing, “ _You said you wanted to be a hero!_ ” And then flopped on their bed, turning his back to his friend.

Frisk raised their hand to touch the boy’s back but stopped mid-air. Sighing, they stood up and headed to their bed without even changing into their old pyjamas. The mattress was so cold it felt like sleeping against snow. Shivering, they curled back on themselves, wishing to feel determined and courageous again.

As they both fell asleep with mixed feelings, none of the children saw the shadow lurking in the corner and staring at them with intensity. He needed the humans to follow his instructions. And he needed them both. Getting closer, he let a grey hand on the oldest child’s shoulder, making him shiver.

 

“ _Dark, Darker and Yet Darker. Don’t let it happen again, human._ ” The monster signed even though no one could see him, and vanished for good. Swan just jolted in their sleep, before turning towards Frisk.


	2. Chapitre 1: Mont Ebott

Two days passed without another meeting with the ghost, and Swan was still ignoring them. It wasn’t fair, Frisk thought. They might be an adventurous child but they weren’t reckless! It was already hard to run away from the Orphanage alone, much less two children escaping. Watching Sister Andrea as she wrote a new formula to the board, their mind wandered over the possibilities. They knew their chances to be unseen were quite low.

In the end, Frisk wasn’t that opposed to the idea, they just felt a need to be cautious. Like any child would, they felt a thrill of excitement as they thought of the possibilities of adventure and discovery. It was easy to get excited about what could happen if the legend was true. To be honest, they would have already begun to plan their walk to the mountain if it wasn’t for the silent treatment given by Swan.

Speaking of Swan, he was sitting on their left, trying to solve the math exercise given by Sister Andrea. He looked somewhat silly with his wild locks falling around his glasses, sticking out his tongue in full concentration. Giggling, Frisk made sure the nun was back to her desk before scribbling on a piece of paper and sliding it towards their friend. Looking surprised, Swan picked it up and read the message with a frown.

 

“ _You should tie your hair if you want to actually see what you’re writing._ ”

Determined not to look at their friend, Swan frowned as he quickly wrote something back. Glancing at the chubby nun, now talking to another child, Swan flicked the ball of paper towards Frisk.

“ _Your hair is longer than mine! And I’m not talking to you._ ”

Frisk rolled their eyes while playing with their bang. Truth was, it indeed needed to be cut but they weren’t so enthusiastic about it. Short hair wasn’t their thing. A small paper plane suddenly landed on their math notebook and Frisk smiled before unfolding it.

“ _Have you changed your mind?_ ”

Swan was now pretending to finish his exercise but the way he tapped his index against the desk showed his true state of mind. It was always like this: whenever they had a silly fight, the tan boy would ignore them but secretly wait for Frisk to talk to them first. Right now, it was more convenient to communicate like this though. Sister Andrea was almost blind and wouldn’t notice the two children throwing paper planes to each other.

 _“I never said no._ ” Frisk answered, and they were glad to see the surprised expression on their friend’s face.

“ _But you didn’t say yes…_ ”

The youngest child tried to hold back a grin. Swan was paying them full attention now and they could finally get their plan started.

“ _If it’s not a trap and we have to help the monsters, we need to get prepared. That’s why I told you to wait. ☹_ ”

“ _It’s not a trap!_ ” Swan wrote, doodling a spooky ghost next to Frisk’s smiley. He just knew they had to find the entrance to the Underground. The feeling wasn’t easy to explain; it was more than curiosity and different from a normal form of excitement. It felt important. The boy could see in his friend’s eyes that they felt the same. His heart began to beat faster as Frisk began to write down his plan.

_“There’s a map in our geography book. The Mountain isn’t too far but we still need to be prepared.”_

_“I have an empty water bottle we can fill and bring with us.”_

_“And I have a few biscuits. And a band aid! My backpack doesn’t close anymore but we can use yours._ ”

 

After twenty minutes of pretending to do their exercise when the nun was around, their plan was properly folded into Frisk’s pocket. The bell rang and all of the children followed the Sister from the portico to the playground for their morning break. Swan took Frisk’s hands and they both slowed down until they were the last ones to leave the classroom. Then they began to sneak towards their dorm, hiding around corners when they heard the wood creaking every time a Sister was around. During those intense moments their breathing felt louder, sweat covering the palms of their hands.

Finally reaching the room without encountering any obstacles, the two of them began to fill Swan’s bag with whatever could be useful for the trip: A bottle of fresh water, cranberry cookies, Disney Band aids, Swan’s second pair of glasses and the map pages from Frisk’s geography book. They decided to tear it off as it wouldn’t be of any good if they get lost on their way to the mountain.

Making sure they didn’t forget anything, Frisk realized Swan was staring through the window with a nostalgic expression. Except for the annual visits to the zoo, he had never left the orphanage. No matter how exciting the situation was, it was normal for the older boy to feel nervous too. Giving them a comforting hug, Frisk signed them that they will be fine and return from their mission before their absence was noticed. Swan smiled and gestured as if they were blowing a kiss.

 

“ _Thank you_.”

 

Frisk smiled back before helping the boy put on his backpack. With a last glance to their bedroom, the two of them finally began their unexpected journey to the legendary Mount Ebott.  Their escape was slow and careful. The easiest exit would have been to use the main entrance, but it was obviously out of question; they would be spotted as soon as they got out. Thankfully the nuns hadn’t repaired the lock of the back yard’s door yet. The children were able to sneak outside without being seen, as the Sisters were either looking after the other kids or setting the tables for lunch.

The weather was a bit cold for a September’s morning and they suddenly realized it should have been wise to wear another layer of clothes. Right now both of them were wearing an old striped sweater and a more recent pair of pants. Playing with the clip that held his bang off his face, Snow complained he should have brought a beanie instead.

 

“ _At last it’s not raining_.” Frisk signed. “ _We will get warmer as we walk_.”

 

It was actually quite pleasant and refreshing after awhile. They hid in the bushes when they heard cars driving close to their spot, and stopped after 30 minutes to drink and eat. Being children, they did tend to get distracted by the colourful leaves falling off the trees, an easy thing to do, and they ran into those that were on the ground, laughing at their new freedom. Everything was going well so far.

It took them another 30 minutes to finally reach the mountain. They stared up at it, faces shining and eyes wide with excitement. The peak seemed closer than what they expected, and it only filled them with more determination to find the secret entrance.

The vegetation was dense but not to the point of being too risky or slowing them up. Sometimes when the slope smoothed a little, the two kids signed each other about the possible monsters they might encounter. Were they three feet tall? Would there be an army of dwarves? Or maybe fairies? The legend never truly gets into detailing the monsters’ appearances and abilities. Lost in their daydreams, none of them considered the fact they might still resent the humans for trapping them under the surface of the earth.

Glancing to see if Frisk was still following behind, Swan smiled when he saw his friend’s red nose. They were almost at the peak now and the air was getting much cooler: white puffs were escaping their lips every time they breathed. Rubbing his hands together, Swan wondered if it would be warm down there.

 The view from the mountain was something the deaf boy would have never expected to see, used to the one from their bedroom over the garden. To be honest, watching the nuns plant seeds and watch them grow wasn’t so interesting after 7 years. A sudden move above their heads caught the kids’ attention and Frisk laughed as they spotted a squirrel on a branch. Standing next to them, Swan wonder if there were squirrels in the Underground. Maybe magical ones with pink fur and shining eyes? The idea made him smile.

As he move to touch Frisk’s back, Swan froze; something cold was on his shoulder. He slowly turned his head to look behind him, frightened, but relaxed as he recognised the grey silhouette floating a few inches away. Just as Swan began to salute him, the ghost began to float in another direction. Frowning, the boy decided to follow them. Maybe he was guiding him to a secret door?

Frisk barely realized their friend went missing, still trying to get the squirrel’s attention, but turned just in time to see the last glimpse of him in the foliage. Frisk scowled and chased after him at a run, avoiding branches and dodging bushes in an attempt to catch up. Just as they started to worry they might have missed a turn, they spot the familiar green jumper a few steps away. Smiling, they brushed off the hair out of their face and walked closer.

It only took one blink and suddenly Swan wasn’t there anymore. Frisk screamed their friend’s name as they ran towards the spot where he was standing one second ago. Pale and worried, they didn’t spot the tricky branch at their feet and tripped on it. The expected ground never met their face; instead they fell inside a dark pit with a loud yelp, their stomach fluttering. Without knowing it, the two children found the entrance they were looking for.

Staring into the darkness, Gaster smiled. It took longer than expected but his plan was finally operational. Everyone’s fate depended of the two human children now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading guys:!  
> I hope you enjoy it so far. Don't hesitate to send me some feedback; I'm curious to know what you think of Swan :)


	3. Chapter 2: Of Monsters and Men

Swan went downward for what seemed to be an eternity and at a speed that constricted his throat painfully. He was going to be sick; already he could feel the disgusting taste inside his mouth when he suddenly hit his shoulders against a solid surface. For the split of a second he thought he was saved. Sadly it was just a distortion of the tunnel’s form and he was now rolling over the dirty slope. Pointy stones and roots cut the skin of his hands as the boy protected his face and neck as much as he could. Tears were flowing from his eyes that he had previously shut. His lips were sealed to avoid dirt getting inside his mouth.

Swan was terrified to die before reaching the Underground. Plus, what if something happened to Frisk?  Before he could worry any further, the ground disappeared for a moment under him. Swan opened his eyes for a second and saw an odd strain of yellow. He barely identified it as a bed of flowers before everything was black again.

 

Frisk wasn’t doing well either. Screaming from the top of their lungs, they tried to stop their fall by grabbing everything they could. Clay got under their nails and into their clothes, making their skin itch. Alice seemed to have a more pleasant fall when she found her way to Wonderland, they thought.

“Huff!”

The sudden contact with the tunnel’s outline was quite painful but inevitable. The kid tried to stop the fall by pushing their feet and back against the earthy walls. They still slipped a few inches down before the pressure was enough to stabilise them. Now they were in an uncomfortable position, and covered with dirt.

Their daydreams of reaching the Underground had been less catastrophic; neither them nor Swan had expected such an entrance. Hissing in pain as their muscles cramped, Frisk admitted they would eventually have to keep falling; they couldn’t leave Swan on their own.  This precarious position was only a short and welcoming break but now was the time to fall further.

 They took a deep breath, and let go of their holds against the clay. Frisk began to scream, their stomach fluttering from the gravity’s effect. It was now like sliding on a really sharp and muddy toboggan. Finally they saw the end of the tunnel which opened on a large cave. There was a major point Frisk haven’t considered yet: how were they going to land safely? Curling up to protect their face, they suddenly crashed and rolled on a bed of flowers with a painful gasp, stars dancing above them as they tried to open their eyes. Muffling their cry of pain, Frisk turned their head left, and felt their heart bump in their chest when they recognised Swan’s backpack.  Unfortunately, their consciousness began to fade, and Frisk blacked out just as they began to reach for their friend.

 

 

 _Something cold was pressed against his cheek_. A spasm ran through Swan’s body. Everything was so painful and he was afraid his ankle was sprained. He was actually surprised he had enough strength left to breathe. The cold sensation was back on his forehead and his eyes finally opened. At first, everything was blurry and it took him a few tries before he could actually recognise the familiar figure above him. Unable to lift his hands to sign, he gave the mysterious ghost a weak smile.

The monster stared at them for a while before glancing on their right. Following his gaze, Swan was glad to see Frisk lying on their back next to him. His friend was covered with dirt and dead leaves, but the movement of their chest proved they were still alive. The tan boy began to sob as he was overwhelmed by what they both went through in just a day. The ghost waited for him to calm down before touching his shoulder.

 

“ _Are you broken?_ ” He signed and Swan tried his best to shake his head. The motion made him feel dizzy, but it couldn’t be helped. Besides, it was still too painful to sign back. They would have to communicate like this for now.

“ _You reached the Underground. Something dark is coming. Be determined, human._ ”

 

Before he could do anything, the shadow vanished. Frisk and he were in danger. Clenching his teeth, the deaf boy tried to sit up. It took him a lot of effort, but he finally managed to do so. Enjoying his little victory, he tried to slide towards his friend. It would be pointless to try standing on his injured ankle. A quick examination proved that Frisk was only unconscious and covered with scratches. Hopefully they will find band aids and disinfectants soon.

Occupied taking care of his friend, Swan didn’t realised they weren’t alone anymore.

 

Standing behind the human boy, Flowey was smiling. Finally some distraction. It must be his lucky day; not only did the seventh human fell back, but they brought a little friend with them. How considerate of them… Crawling closer, the flower tried to catch the boy’s attention.

 

"Howdy! I'm FLOWEY! FLOWEY the FLOWER!" he said with a friendly smile, not knowing his chosen ‘playmate’ was unable to hear him. The human didn’t move an inch.  Confused and a little irritated, his expression strained a little. “Golly, Tryin’ to play with me aren’t you?” he tried again, in vain. No response. Eyes twitching nervously as he tried to keep his cover on, Flowey tried one last time:

“Ahah, you must think you’re funny, ignoring me like that…” He mumbled and, predictably, once again got no answer. Tired of his game, his face suddenly morphed changed into a terrifying one as he began to scream at the unresponsive back. “DIE NOW!” The monster shrieked.

 

Swan felt the skin of his neck itching, like a warning. Turning his head, he barely had time to spot the scary monster when his chest throbbed. His dark eyes opened wide and his jaw dropped when he realised what was happening. There was something shaped like a heart and glowing a soothing red colour floating right under his eyes. He wanted to look at it more, but now wasn’t the time to get distracted. There were seeds floating around the monster now and he didn’t need to hear what it was saying to know he was being targeted. Bringing his trembling hand to his silver brooch, Swan felt an unexpected rush of determination through his body. No matter how scary the situation was, he had to protect Frisk: their mission couldn’t end so early just because he ran away. Flowey attacked and the boy tried to protect his face with his arms, waiting for the impact.

_It didn’t happen._

 

 Flames suddenly rose from nowhere, burning the projectiles before they could touch Swan. Those definitely didn’t come from him...so from who? Flowey yelped and quickly ran away from the newcomer as Swan’s eyes frantically searched for the source of the flames. His saviour stepped into the light and Swan’s jaw dropped as he stared at the monster walking towards him. They were… huge. From a child’s eyes, the creature was as tall as a tree. It wasn’t the most striking feature yet; what really caught his attention was the fur.

 Suddenly, all of his fear was gone. There was some kind of soothing aura around the goat monster. Swan wished Frisk was awake to see them too: Their head reminded him of a white nubian goat, with droopy ears and short horns. Swan only knew the species’ name because Sister Andrea gave him an animal book for his birthday. The last page he read had the picture of said goat on it. The creature had long eyelashes and the boy wondered if they were a “she”. He was also quite surprised to discover monsters wore clothes. Maybe humans and monsters were more alike than what Humans thought.

 

“Oh my goodness. Are you alright, my child?” Toriel asked with her soft voice as she kneeled in front of the human. “How could this monster try to harm you?” She whispered to herself as she examined the fallen child. A sudden groan from behind caught her attention and she was surprised to discover a second human.

“You have a friend with you?” The goat was puzzled: never before did she rescue two children at the same time. Maybe they will stay with her, this time then? Surely they wouldn’t get bored of the Ruins if they weren’t alone. 

“Do not worry, my child. I am Toriel, the caretaker of these Ruins: you and your friend will be safe with me.”

Of course Swan didn’t hear the comforting words, but the motherly expression on the monster’s face was enough to understand. Realising he couldn’t stand because of his sprained ankle, he pointed at it and grimaced, hoping the creature would get the message. Toriel frowned at the bruised and swollen ankle. It wasn’t pretty but she knew how to heal it.

“I will take care of your injuries once we’re home, little boy. I promise.”

Seeing as the two children weren’t in a state to walk, Toriel presented her back to the boy. Feeling disoriented, it took Swan a few seconds to realise what she meant. His mind was a huge cloud since he hit his head when he landed. Carefully, he embraced the fluffy neck of the monster and Toriel chuckled at the tickling sensation.

“Good boy.” She said as she placed her left arm under Swan’s leg. “Now, let’s pick your little friend.” The task was a bit hard as she was unbalanced but, somehow, she still managed to pick up Frisk like a delicate flower. They twitched their nose and groaned, opening their eyes just enough time to recognise Swan’s glasses above them. They were both safe, at last. Smiling, Frisk fell back asleep.

 

Toriel positioned them closer to her chest before standing up. Then, she made sure Swan wasn’t slipping before heading towards her home. Usually she let the children resolve puzzles and meet the few monsters living here but today was an exception. As they walked, some monsters followed the trio with curious eyes. Struggling to keep his eyes open, Swan smiled as Toriel stop to talk with a funny looking ghost.  The monster reminded him of a magician as his tears flew up instead of down to form a topper. Frisk would have loved to see it, he thought. Maybe once they were both healed, they could ask the ghost to do some tricks again?

 

“Here we are, my child. This is my home!” Toriel finally said, and Swan smiled sleepily at the lovely cottage standing at the end of another purple room. It looked cosy and welcoming; if he had to choose, that would be the kind of home he would like to live in when he got adopted. It was warm inside and everything was tidy and clean.

Toriel headed to one of the guest rooms.  It was obvious other children might have lived there in the past; there were shoes of various sizes lying against a wall. Frisk was gently lay on the left bed and covered with a warm blanket before Toriel took care of Swan who got the bed on the right. The mattress was far more comfortable than the one from the Orphanage and the boy giggled as he bounced on it while the goat monster took care of his ankle.

Toriel tried to talk with him but the boy didn’t answer. He must be too tired for that, she thought. Helping the human to cover himself with his blanket, she kissed his forehead before wishing him a good rest. Closing the door, the Ruins caretaker took a deep breath and shut her eyes. She couldn’t let those two leave: none of the precedent children came back as all of them met a tragic end. Toriel didn’t want to lose anyone again. Sighing, she shook her head and headed toward the kitchen. If there’s one thing she was convinced of, it was that a homemade pie was the best way to help children recover from a fall. Humming a silly song, the goat monster put her apron on and began to work. After all, she had not one but two mouths to feed this time!

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!   
> Thanks for the kudos! I hope you enjoyed this chapter :D


	4. Chapter 3: Goodbye MOMster

«  **Aaah !**  »

Frisk suddenly jerked wide awake, gasping for air. They felt alert and terrified, their head buzzing with chaotic pictures. It was the same nightmare, again and again. Frisk closed their eyes but that was worst as blue flames danced under their eyelids. Heart pounding fast, they threw a quick glance towards Swan, who was sleeping peacefully. Frisk sighed. At least one of them was able to rest properly.

_“On day like this, kids like you…”_

Frisk whimpered. The threat was echoing in the back of their mind, so low that it was hard to understand them. The voice was distorted and nerve-wracking. Rubbing their puffy eyes, the child decided to go and throw some water on their face.

 

Toriel’s house was quite charming and they quickly memorised where each room was located once they woke up. Time seemed to flow here: when they weren’t exploring the Ruins, they would help the goat monster to cook and clean up the already so tidy home. The monsters were also different from what they expected; only a daring Froggit had tried to challenge Frisk once but a heavy glance was enough to stop their attacks.

Yet Frisk felt like they should keep going. There was something inside their chest that pained them more and more each day, an odd sense of nostalgia and aching for something they couldn’t quite describe. Sometimes they would be watching Swan drawing snails for Toriel and they would feel like crying. If it wasn’t blue flames that woke them up, it was the longing cries of a child in their mind. A child who missed their family.

The cold water on their face brought them back to present time and to a more rational trail of thoughts. If Toriel’s place was safe and welcoming, it might not be the case behind the gates of the basement. Otherwise, why would the goat monster forbid them the access to the long corridor? Besides, Swan was still using crutches to walk even though the Ruins caretaker’s magic helped a lot with his sprained ankle. Walking back to their room, Frisk smiled fondly.

Swan had never looked so happy than since they arrived here. To them who were used to be “just two orphans”, being treated like they were Toriel’s own children was quite overwhelming. She made them the tastiest cinnamon butternut pies ever and surrounded them with love. She made sure monsters would treat them well and even tried to learn a few signs to communicate with Swan when Frisk told them he was deaf. The day after, the goat monster had given him a notebook he could use to talk to everyone here. Another day and the two children were calling her mom.

There was a sweet scent in the corridor and Frisk’s mouth began to water; it must be breakfast time soon. Was Swan up now? Surely the smell must have taken him off his sleep. The boy’s love of food was quite entertaining sometimes, especially when his eyes are shiny when he stares as his upcoming meal. A sudden memory came back to Frisk, making them giggle. It happened last summer, when the Sisters took them to the zoo and everyone was in the lemurs’ zone. The small monkeys were free to come close to the visitors and one even sat on Frisk’s head. As he took a picture, Swan didn’t realise the little lemur was going through his bag and when he did it was already too late: the thief had his sandwich. He was still crying over it when they came back to the Orphanage and Frisk teased him for weeks.

 

Shaking their head with a puff, they realised they had stop walking in front of a mirror. Their reflection was the same as usual. Medium length straight brown hair, short bangs… it was slightly longer now but other than that, it was just them… Frisk.

_“Are you sure of that?”_

Unsettled, Frisk turned on their left as their heart pounded faster. The corridor was empty and silent... yet they swore they just heard someone talking. Narrowing their eyes, they wondered if a creature was pulling a trick on them.

“Someone’s here? I didn’t hear you cow-ming.” They tried, aware how appreciated puns were among monsters. Tension grew up as nobody answered. A shiver ran along their neck. Were they really alone? Taking another step, then another, they began to head cautiously towards their bedroom. It felt hard to breathe now, as if something was contracting their throat.

_“Hi, my name is-“_

“Frisk?”

Toriel’s sudden call made them scream as the tension faded away. The goat monster kneeled in front of them, a comforting paw on their cheek.

“Are you alright, my child?”

“Sorry mom, I was just… surprised.” Frisk laughed nervously, rubbing their eyes. A faint blush had appeared on Toriel’s face at the mention of “mom”, yet they still seemed worried about the human child.

“Was it another nightmare? It’s my fault; I shouldn’t have let you watch this spooky movie last night. Mettaton likes special effects a bit too much to my own tastes.”

Her concern about them was so genuine Frisk instantly felt better. They talked a bit about the scary parts of the movie when the closest door open and Swan appeared. Exchanging a glance, Toriel and Frisk puffed. With his sleepy eyes, dry drool on his chest and awful bed hair, the boy was quite a sight. Lead by mother instincts, Toriel welcomed him with a fluffy kiss on the forehead. Then, she used the tip of her sleeve to wash his face with a laugh. Swan rolled his eyes but Frisk knew he actually enjoyed it.

 

They teased him about it and followed him and the goat monster towards the living room where the table was already set and breakfast was waiting for them. However, Frisk couldn’t chase the uncertain feeling from earlier. As they passed in front of another mirror, they didn’t see the shadow following them in the reflection.

 

 

“ _You have to go_.”

Swan bit his lips. In the two weeks they had been staying here, it was the third time the ghost appeared. The first one he had guided him in the Ruins to Monster candies, which had been pretty charming. The second one, he had urged him to explore the basement and open the gates. However Toriel had stopped him gently but firmly as he stood in front of the door. If he was honest, Swan would admit he wasn’t too fond of leaving the Ruins. For the first time in his life, he knew what it must feel like to have a family that cares about you.

“ _Do I?_ ” Swan wondered, regretting it instantly; Gaster’s shadow suddenly grew and began to crawl towards him. Jumping on the bed, the boy threw a worried glance to the ghost. His usual expression was now dismayed as his mouth seemed to melt. Swan was pretty sure he would have nightmares for days now. Gulping, he closed his eyes and wished for Frisk to come back quick. His friend was sent by Toriel to go buy some Spider donuts for breakfast while Swan was still asleep. Yet the attack didn’t come; instead, something cold touched his ankle. Shivering, he risked to open an eye.

_Magic!_

All fear gone, Swan stared at the odd vaporous shape floating around his leg. He felt something was happening inside: his muscle felt as if ants were running around. Gaster then traced invisible patterns on the human’s skin and Swan shivered; the bones were icy and sharp. The emotions coming from the ghost’s magic was so different than Toriel’s. When Frisk and he were around her when she used magic to light fire or clean up the kitchen, the atmosphere was warm and welcoming. Motherly, even.

But now… now the magic was unsettling. Swan felt cold and nostalgic. Without thinking much about it, he bought his hand to Gaster’s face. The skull was somehow dusty to the touch and Swan feared it would crush under his fingertips. Gaster stared at him with his unreadable eyes before stepping away. Just like that, the bond was broken.

“ _What happened…?_ ” Swan asked, feeling a bit shaken. “ _Your magic… it feels sad._ ”

“ _Let the past be dormant, human. I healed you and you owe me._ ” Gaster answered, and Swan was indeed able to move his ankle without any pain now. “ _You promised to help. Fulfil this promise._ ”

Swan nodded, feeling guilty. He shouldn’t have considered abandoning every monster just because Toriel pretty much adopted them. Blowing up a kiss to thank the ghost for his help, he then stood up for the first time without any struggle. To think a sprained ankle would have taken almost a month to heal up there…  Sighing, the boy picked up his backpack and began to stuff it while he waited for Frisk. They have been more prevalent than him; under their bed were hidden whatever could be needed once they both left the Ruins: clean bandages, a water bottle and juice boxes, chocolate bars, clean underwear and socks Toriel lend them etc… 

When Frisk came back, Gaster was already gone and Swan quickly explained what happened during their absence. Somehow, they felt a bit jealous. The ghost only appeared to Swan, even though they were perfectly able to communicate with him too.  

No, it wasn’t right to feel this way, Frisk realised. After all, Gaster and Frisk were the only persons Swan could truly communicate with whereas for them, everyone spoke and understood English. Frisk added their toothbrushes and an oddly shaped plush into the bag before giving a nervous smile to Swan.

“I’m sorry we have to leave so early.” They said.

“ _It’s ok._ ” Swan signed. He was obviously lying judging by the way he played with his brooch without looking at them, but Frisk didn’t comment. Instead, they took his hand and give it a reassuring squeeze.

“Yeah, it is.” They said, before wrapping a scarf around his neck. “Here, Toriel once said it was cold behind the gates.”

“ _Thanks mom._ ” Swan signed and Frisk groaned before pulling the bag on their back. “ _Frisk… what about Toriel_?”

“We can’t say goodbye, Swan. You know she will never let us leave otherwise.” They said. “Besides…”

Frisk hesitated. Should they tell Swan about the crippling feeling of being watched? Probably not. They hated to lie to their friend, but for now it felt easier to omit it.

 

Taking a look into the corridor, Frisk took back Swan’s hand and they began to walk towards the basement. Accidently bumping into a flower jar, the two children stared at each other in fear of being caught in the act. Yet Frisk could still hear Toriel humming in the kitchen, and they let go of their breath in relief. Clenching their hand around Swan’s fingers, they took the stairs and once they were down, began to run. The echo of their steps and their ragged breaths seemed so loud in their ears.

The gate was in front of them. They just had to push it and- Suddenly, Swan let go of their hand and Frisk stared, horrified, as the boy run backward.

 _“Let him be, and leave the damn place!”_ An irritated voice said in the back of their mind. _“He will be fine on his own. Leave, damnit!”_

Frisk bit their lips. It was tempting. Swan was happy here, and Frisk considered themself strong enough to accomplish the mission alone. They thought of the Swift knife in their pocket jeans, the one they stole when Toriel was playing with Swan.

“No. It’s with him or never at all.” Frisk said, shaking their head. The mysterious voice stayed silent, but Frisk could feel their rage burning in their chest. Grimacing, they finally heard Swan’s step feet coming back.

 

 

Realising something was missing, Swan had let go of his friend’s hand. His brooch fell when he bumped into the jar earlier but he couldn’t leave without it. Jumping the steps three by three, Swan almost cried of relief when he found it at the top of the stair. What he didn’t expect however was for Toriel to be here too, giving him a heart breaking stare.

“What were you doing downstairs, my child?” She said softly even thought she was obviously hurt. “Come now, it’s time for lu-“

As the fluffy paw approached him, Swan snapped out of his torpor and grabbed his brooch before running in the opposite direction. Hopefully, Frisk would have found a way to open the large gates while he was gone.

 

 

_“Swan! Come back, don’t force me to stop you!”_

Frisk’s smile when they saw Swan quickly vanished when they heard Toriel, and they began to push on the huge gate with all their strength. Panting hard, Swan joined them but it was useless: the heavy door refused to move. They were trapped.

“My children. Please don’t… I can’t let you leave. _He_ will kill you. “Toriel pleaded and the children flinched a little, but didn’t move. Rubbing her eyes, the goat monster took a deep breath before looking at them. Her expression was stern and tired.

“Just like the others. Then, I will stop you. I’m sorry. You leave me no choice…” She said bitterly, slowly raising a finger towards them. Something twisted in Frisk’s stomach as they got a feeling of déjà-vu. Swan’s fingers clenched around theirs and Frisk knew they couldn’t let him face Toriel: he was too much of an easy target. Taking a deep breath, they took a few steps to face Toriel.

“We can’t stay, mom.” Frisk said, trying to ignore the odd excitement of the presence inside their mind. “I don’t want to fight you.”

“Me neither. But it’s for the best.” Toriel said and suddenly clenched her fist as if she was pulling something. In a way, she did: Frisk stumbled as if someone has pushed them and when they opened their eyes, a glowing red heart was floating in front of them.

“Swan, step back.” Frisk ordered before staring back at the monster. The boy obeyed, quickly signing “Good luck” before adding “I’m sorry” towards Toriel. Then, he ran behind a column and stared at the two of them with a gulp. His hands were clenching his brooch against his chest in a silent prayer. The second after, Toriel threw her first attack.

 

 

Frisk avoided it way too easily; the way they were able to predict what was coming was both unnatural yet felt so familiar to them. Every missed attacks from Toriel made the entity laugh inside their head.

“You have a knife! Use it, damnit!” The voice kept shouting, but Frisk ignored them; they weren’t a murderer and would never hurt their mom. The thought seemed to upset the presence, as they sounded angrier.

“She isn’t ** _ your _**mom!”

Trying to force the voice to shut up, Frisk got distracted and didn’t saw the flames coming until it was too late and they got hit in the chest.

“ _Huff!_ ”

Gasping, Toriel brought a paw to her mouth as they fell on their knees, eyes wide and grimacing.

“Frisk!” She shouted, petrified. What was she thinking, fighting a child? She wasn’t so different from Asgore right now. Clenching her teeth, she waved her hand and Frisk’s soul vanished, ending the fight. Swan instantly jumped out of his hiding place and run towards his friend before kneeling in front of them.

The pain was similar to the burn from boiling water, but Frisk had seen worse. Besides, they could tell Toriel hadn’t put her whole strength into the attack, which they were grateful for. She was now standing in front of them before suddenly bringing the two orphans into her tight embraces. They rested like that for a while until Swan gave a week tug on her tunic.

“ _Mom, Please. We have to go_.” He signed, but Toriel shook her head, repeating “No, no,no” until Frisk gently touched her face.

“Mom. I promise we’ll come back. But for now, everyone needs our help. Please, open the doors.”

Glancing at them both, Toriel took a deep breath. She had failed to protect the fallen humans, once again. Standing up, she walked past them without a look before pushing on the heavy gates. Those were made so children couldn’t open them alone but she was strong enough to do it herself.

Behind was a dark corridor that ended by a dim source of light.

“Here. Leave now, before I change my mind.” She said, refusing to look behind. It was madness. By allowing it, she knew she was condemning them to a certain death. Walking closer, Frisk gave them a reassuring squeeze of the hand.

“Thank you. You’re the best MOMster I ever met.”

The unexpected pun made her half sob – half chuckle as she watched the kid stand at the beginning of the corridor. Swan hesitated before running inside her arms, embracing her tightly with his little arms. Caressing the messy locks, Toriel stepped back to look at him properly.

“You will have choices to make, my child. Please remember me, and do the right ones.” She said, and Swan nodded seriously giving her one last hug.

“ _I love you, mom._ ” He signed, and Toriel hold back a sob.

“I love you too, my child. Now go, and don’t look back.”

Frisk waited for Swan to join them before taking his hand, giving him a comforting smile.

“Determined to succeed?” They asked, and Swan nodded. “Good. Let’s save the Underground then!”

 

Once the children were far enough, Toriel began to cry silently as she closed the gates. They always promised to stay alive. All of them did… but nobody came. One by one, she lost so many children to Asgore.

“Toriel? Where are- oh.”

Jolting, she felt a rush of embarrassment when she saw Napstablook staring at her.  Rubbing her eyes, she gave the little ghost an apologetic smile before heading him upstairs.

“I’m sorry… If I was funnier, they would have stayed…”

“No, my dear. It wasn’t your fault, you are PUNtastic. They were determined to leave, nothing could have stopped them.”

The two monsters walked in silence until they reached the living room and Napstablook suggested he should make some tea. Toriel nodded and fell on her armchair with a grunt. Something shuffled as she did and standing up, she realised it was a folder paper. Raising an eyebrow, she unfolded it and chuckled, bemused. It was a picture of the three of them with a butternut pie that probably have been drawn by Swan when she wasn’t looking.

“Mom,

We are sorry for leaving. Swan will probably cry for hours now, but it’s for the best. We will save everyone and once it’s over, we could live like a family and eat pie forever. You’re an awesome MOMster. See you soon!

Love you,

Frisk and Swan.”

Clenching the paper against her chest, Toriel smiled fondly. She had to believe them, to hold up to the hope of seeing them again, alive and safe. She was their mother, after all. Sighing, she walked into the kitchen and put the drawing on the fridge, next to an old one which was pretty similar as it was also a family drawing.

Above the characters, you could read “Dad, Mom, Asriel, Me”. In the right bottom corner was a name written in red and barely readable anymore.

 _Chara... Her second child_. The first fallen human.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, I honestly considered giving up because of this chap tbh. I'm grateful for gryphonicaccent who not only proof readed this chapter again but boosted me up with their nice comments. Really, thank you TJ!


	5. Chapter 4: SkeleTON of wonders

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was proof readed by the amazing Libra ( http://hellyeahlibra.tumblr.com/ ) as the lovely TJ has been quite buzy lately! I'm grateful for the huge help!!

_A dim light was coming from the stained glasses, reflecting inside the nave and creating a game of shadows. Except from the human,- no, the murderer- standing in front of him, the sacred place was deserted. It’s been long decades since the last time monsters came to the church._

_“t_ _hat’s your fault, isn’t it_ _?” he said, smiling even though his chest was burning with anger. He wanted to tear off the creepy smile from the child’s face, to turn them into an insignificant pile of dust._

_“k_ _ids like you should be burning in hell._ _”_

_“Try if you can, but you know it can’t be avoided.” the human laughed, playing with their knife as they barely avoided one of his Blasters.  “Aren’t you tired of fighting? Come on, just give up like your brother did!”_

_They shouldn’t have said that. At the mention of Papyrus, something snapped inside him and he threw all his strength into his attack, the spike of power reflecting his wrath. But before the attack could reach their target, everything seemed to split and distort around him, like a quicksand. The warm colors of the church were suddenly grey and dusty, and he knew what was coming for it wasn’t his first time experiencing it._

_“s_ _hit…_ _” he whispered between his teeth, taking a step back. In front of him, the child had melted into a dismal black mud before growing and turning into a familiar figure. What seemed to be hands rose to reach over him, and he tried to run away, but couldn’t; guilt glued him to the ground. It was his fault._

**_He felt his sins crawling on his back._ **

XXX

 

A loud knock on his door woke him up and Sans gasped, bones rattling and breathing loudly, his rib cage heaved in short huffs of panic. He knew what this nightmare meant. A new reset… clenching his fist, he proceeded to get dressed and calm down before Papyrus opened his door with a loud bang. Seeing his brother this excited and shining only made it worse; after all, in a few hours he would have to see him turn to a pile of dust. _Again._

“GOOD MORNING, SANS! HOW ARE YOU FEELING TODAY?” Papyrus asked, stepping into the room while throwing a disgusted glance towards the socks and tornado. Sans would have been amused in any other circumstances. But today… oh well. Better the last minutes he was able to spend with his brother be enjoyable before the tragedy inevitably began.

“hi Pap’. well, can’t say that waking up has been an _eye-opening_ experience so far.” he joked with a wink, knowing perfectly how the tall skeleton would react.

“SANS!!!! I SAID NO PUNS ALLOWED HERE!!! BESIDES, YOU SHOULD ALREADY BE AT THE STATION BY NOW!!!” Papyrus scolded, before posing. “YOU NEED TO PUT SOME EFFORT INTO IT IF YOU WANT TO BE AS COOL AS I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS!”

“oh come on, Pap,’” Sans smiled, gently slapping his brother’s arm. “no one can be as cool as you.”

Actual sparkles appeared around the skeleton at the sudden compliment and he grumbled some embarrassed nonsense before taking his leave, urging his brother to go to work already.

“WHAT IF SOME HUMANS FELL DOWN AND REACHED SNOWDIN BECAUSE YOU WEREN’T AT THE STATION?”

“then you’ll obviously catch them. isn’t that your dream?” Sans said, chasing the memory of Papyrus turning into dust away. It wasn’t the time to think about it. Not yet.

 

The two of them exchanged a few more words until Papyrus left the house for good with striking enthusiasm; Sans wasn’t sure there was anyone else down there who loved work as much as his brother. Guess for him it was a job to die for… Making an odd noise, he let his head rest against the main door. He had to make his entrance now. The same good old fart joke, forcing a smile on his face as he met the brother-killer once again. Arming himself with the whoopee cushion and pulling his hoodie on, Sans finally opened the door and was greeted by the same blinding snow.

“well…” He began, chuckling nervously, “isn’t in an Eggsellent day?”

But nobody laughed.

 

XXXXX

 

They were delighted, to say the least. As soon as the last room opened on the unexpected white land, Frisk had hurried to attack Swan with a snowball, beginning a merciless fight between them. The boy shouldn’t be underestimated. He might have been the sweetest child of the Orphanage, he was quite the shot. Maybe today wasn’t the best example of his skills since the image of Toriel was still haunting him, but Swan still managed to make Frisk run away, laughing and begging for him to stop. Yet, as good as he was, he forgot how tricky his friend could be and suddenly found himself rolling into the snow after Frisk caught them by the waist and gently made him fall.

They lied for a while in the snow, making angels and watching the darkness above their heads. Frisk wondered how such a phenomenon was possible underground. Maybe it was fake one, like those used in movies? Probably not, the coldness was quite real under their hands.

Who knows, maybe they’d be able to witness snowflakes falling from the darkness above them if they stayed long enough…

 

Suddenly, Frisk jumped on their feet, alerted. A few steps away laid a broken branch that wasn’t here a few minutes ago. Signalling Swan to stand behind them, they felt shivers crippling up their spine. Instinctively, Swan caught their hand and held it tight. His presence filled Frisk with determination and they took a deep breathe before shouting:

“Who’s here? I’m not afraid of you.”

The low chuckle coming from the wood caught them off guard and Frisk used their body to hide Swan in case something dangerous was coming. A short silhouette finally came off from behind a tree, walking closer at a slow pace.

The presence inside their mind suddenly woke up, agitated.

“c o m e  o n, h u m a n. d o n ' t  y o u  k n o w  h o w  t o  g r e e t  a  n e w  p a – oh.” Sans stopped, caught off guard. “my, am I seeing double? good thing I have two hands, then. let’s shake hands, kiddos.” He offered with a smile. The skeleton was completely puzzled, though, lights in his eye sockets darting quickly from one child to the other. Frisk was back, as expected: however, they weren’t the same as the previous resets. They seemed… human. Sans could feel they had killed no one this time. Was it because of the second child?

 

Exchanging a confused glance, the two humans finally took his hands to greet him. Sans grinned as a sudden fart noise broke the eerie silence surrounding them. It was so unexpected and stupid that Frisk busted in laugh, eyes shining behind their bang. Realizing their iris wasn’t an abnormal shade of red, Sans relaxed a bit before throwing a curious glance toward the quiet boy. Somehow, the joke didn’t seem to humor him as he only looked confused, tilting his head towards Frisk.

“Ah, you missed a joke Swan! He had a fart cushion in his hand, you see. It sounded funny!” Frisk explained between two snorts, making it hard for Swan to understand what they were saying. His face brightened when caught on, beaming at his friend. “That’s a cool trick!” Frisk added towards the skeleton with a friendly smile.

“glad it tickled your funny bone, kiddo.” Sans said, his eyes stuck on the other one. “though, it doesn’t seem to be humerus for your…?”

“Brother.” Frisk finished, taking Swan’s hand with a grin as the boy nodded. It was a decision they took when living with Toriel; if she was their mom, then they were like siblings, right?

“brother, heh. yeah, those are nice. i have one myself, and he’s the coolest guy you’ll ever meet.” Sans said fondly.

“Swan is cool too, even if he’s a crybaby!” Frisk laughed and Swan pouted at this. He didn’t cry that much…

“ _You’re a liar, Frisk_!” he signed with an adorable frown.

 

Sign Language, huh. Sans froze, feeling uneasy. Memories from old times began to crawl back inside his mind and he did his best to hide his sudden change of emotion behind an innocent smile, putting his trembling hands in his pockets.

“heh, he seems quite _handy_ to me,.” he joked. Frisk smiled, not as worried about the skeleton even if he did dress in the blue color they hated so much.

“Yeah, he can’t talk but he can read your li-… mouth?” Frisk hesitated, realizing none of the monsters they had met so far had actual lips.

Swan wasn’t sure how to feel about the skeleton.  Playing with his brooch, he found him a bit intimidating; it was like a Dwarf, chubby version of the Reaper. Yet, he wasn’t as scared as what he used to be during Halloween party, when the twins dressed as skeletons and made him cry.

“What about your brother?” Frisk asked, glancing around as if they expected something to happen. “Is he around?”

“well, he might be there soon; he loves humans you see, he can’t wait to meet and catch one. that’s his big dream, you see?”

“Catch one…?” Frisk asked slowly, their smile dropping. Alarmed, Sans shook his head.

“don’t worry kiddo. he’s a soft bone; no need to worry about him. ah, I think he’s actually coming this way.”

And he was right; an odd sound, was it a laugh? was echoing around them, getting closer as the seconds ticked by. Panicking, Frisk jolted when Sans put a friendly hand on their shoulder.

 

“hey, take a look at this conveniently shaped lamp, over there. Go and hide behind, I’m taking care of _Handsome_.” He winked again, and Frisk gave a reassuring smile to Swan before hiding behind the unexpected furniture. Not sure of what to do, Swan turned to face the skeleton and got hit by a blue jacket. Apparently, Sans decided to lend him the jacket he was wearing, revealing… a second, identical one. Deciding not to question it, Swan hurried to put it on and covered his face with the warm hoodie. He was swimming inside the oversize piece of clothes, but somehow it made him feel safer.

“ _Thank you!_ ” He signed, thinking the gesture was obvious enough for the skeleton to get it. Sans smiled back, ignoring the twist in the guts he didn’t have. Damn. Of all kids that could have fallen down, it have to be this one.

“SAAAAAANS! I HOPE YOU’RE NOT SLACKING AND- OH.”

 

Trying to look as small as possible, Swan gulped. As tall as Toriel and excessively thin compared to his brother, the new skeleton was intimidating. Clenching Sans’ sleeve the way he would do with Frisk, Swan silently prayed for him to have an excellent idea to get them out the frying pan.

“hi Pap’.” Sans greeted, looking as chilled as usual. “of course ‘m not slacking. i’m just trying not to work myself to the bone.”

Papyrus did an outraged noise before turning his attention back to Swan with a frown.

“WHO IS THIS SMALLER SANS?” He asked, squeezing his eyes to get a better look. Swan took a step back, but a hand against his back stopped him from running away. Sans was still grinning, as if the situation wasn’t quite odd.

“come on’ Pap, can’t you recognize our good old’ cousin Mc Ribs?” He said, trying to sound convincing. Frisk slapped a palm over their face as silently as they could, grunting from their hiding place. Surely, there was no one dumb enough to believe-

“OH, OF COURSE! FORGIVE ME COUSIN, I THOUGHT YOU TRESPASSED YEARS AGO.”

 

…It worked. Puffing as quietly as possible, Frisk didn’t witness the shadow floating behind them.

Hiding in the darkness, Gaster stared at the two skeletons talking animatedly to their “cousin”. It was so typical of Sans to get away from tricky situation with the most ridiculous solutions. Feeling something on his neck, Swan turned and waved timidly when he witnessed the ghost a few meters away. The monster nodded in acknowledgment, and vanished between the trees. He couldn’t be seen yet, not just yet.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing Sans and Papyrus are pretty much my biggest challenge in this fic, and I honestly hope I will be able to keep their characters in. Thanks for reading!!!


	6. Chapter 5: ICY a new world

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello dearies! Thanks for reading my fic, it means a lot to me. You're able to get this chapter thanks to the lovely grayscaleeternity. Many thanks to you!!!

Papyrus fell for their trick so easily that it was almost sad; the poor skeleton was too naive for his own good.

It has been funny thought, to watch him sparkle happily over his new found "cousin". Frisk almost regretted being the one hiding, so close yet so far from the family meeting. Feeling their deception, the presence manifested itself again. It wasn’t that surprising anymore, to suddenly hear voices in their head.

 

"They obviously don't want to involve you, idiot. Clearly, they probably forgot you were still hidden. Do you believe they will call you back?" The voice mused, making Frisk wince.

"I don't know what you are, but get out of my mind!" They thought, picturing a wall that would keep the Presence away. It hissed and seemed to leave, but not before giving them a minor headache.

 

Feeling exhausted, Frisk slid against the lamp, breathing heavily in white puffs and sweat covering their forehead. Their jeans were completely soaked now from sitting in the snow, making them shivers.

They were glad the lamp was hiding them from Swan right now. Their brother shouldn't be able to witness them like this. They were the strong sibling, the superhero. Beside the idea of being in such a position in front of the skeleton made them anxious. Sure his attitude was friendly, but there was something unsettling about him. Either it was his ostentatious blue jacket or the way the light in his eyes flickered when he met their gaze, Frisk wasn't sure. Looking for some comfort, they brought a hand to their chest, feeling their heart pulsing through their pullover. The memory of their soul came back to their mind.

While facing Toriel, Frisk had experienced something entirely new; shock from the soul being extracted from their body, confusion, fear, warmness and... Determination. This feeling has been so strong on the instant, it almost scared them. They would have let nothing stand in their way, not even their Momster.

Puffing on their hands to warm them up, the child wondered if this is how Swan would feel if his Soul came out. Frisk doubted it; their brother was too soft, too kind. He would never hurt anyone. Not that Frisk would, obviously.

 

"o n  d a y  l i k e  t h e s e,  k i d s  l i k e  y o u..."

Jerking in a defensive position, Frisk didn't miss the way the skeleton's eyes turned pitchy black for a second, before he gave them a friendly smile again.

"... shouldn’t be sitting in the snow like that. who knows, you might get _Snowdin_."

Frisk forced a smile at the joke, trying to relax when they realised Swan was standing right behind the monster. There was no sight of the taller skeleton. They must have been able to get rid of him, then.

" _Are you ok?"_ Frisk signed, their fingers hard to move because of the cold. Realising it, Swan pulled on their hands to push them into the huge sleeves of the jacket he was now wearing. The gesture was familiar; they always did it during cold day of winter after outside breaks.

"looks like you have a trick up your sleeves, kiddo." Sans joked, more to himself than anything. His own hands were clenched in his pocket to hide the trembling. The kid's reaction earlier, how they turned into a defensive position. as if- no, it wasn't time to remember the Resets.

 

_The Bad Times. The piles of dusts._

"Where is your brother?"

The question snapped him out, and he realised that Frisk was looking around while their brother gave him a worried stare. Damn observant. Putting his fake smile on, the skeleton shrugged.

"who knows? Pap' must have a skeleTON of things to do. he is head over heels when it comes to work."

The child snickered, and Sans was glad to see how different they acted this time. The hopeful part of him, the most fragile one, wondered what would happen this time.

"okay kiddos, I’m sure you find me quite humerus, but I need to go. the town isn't hard to find. here, take those few dog tricks, those could be _handy_." He said with a wink to Swan, who smiled timidly at the pun. Sans raised the eyebrow he didn't have; so the kid could truly read on his lips, even if he had none. With a last careful glance to Frisk (still no red eyes, good), he teleported himself, making the humans gasp. The trick always gets them, the first time. It felt wickedly good, to still be able to shock them.

 

\--------------------

 

Reappearing in his room, Sans let himself slide against the door with a shaking sigh. Then, he hid his face behind his hand as his rib cage shake in a silent, nervous laugh.

 

"that's crazy." He breathed, a blue light flickering in his left eye. "the brother killer and now _handsome_. Huh."

His laugh was joyless, hollow. Sweat was rolling down his bones, making his skull shine under the sunlight coming from the window. He wished to believe things will be fine this time, but it was impossible. Every time things turned out for the worst. It reminded him of something from the past. His past.

_‘Dark, Darker and yet Darker.’_

 

That’s what ‘ _he’_ used to say about their time in the surface, before the humans trapped them under the mountain. Sans barely remember the tales of all those years that ended in a bloodbath on both sides. It’s been too many years since then. Too many resets.

Taking a deep breathe, he counted to 3 before opening his eyes to fix a certain point on his desk. In a blue frame was a picture of Papyrus and him, when they were children and trying to make a snowman. It always managed to calm him down, to watch this photo. Sans could barely recall any happy memories but this one was his favourite. That and the one he kept in his lab. He couldn’t remember the last time he entered the room. When did he gave up being a scientist, and turned into such a lazy bone?

Oh, well. Now wasn’t the time to think about the past. He didn’t enjoy feeling _Pasthetic_. Laughing bitterly at his own joke, he finally rose on his feet and dropped himself on his bed. Comfier to nap on then that dusty carpet. As usual, it only took him a few seconds before sleep took him.

 

\--------------------------

 

Underground was like Heaven to Frisk. After the skeleton meeting, Swan and they had spent the afternoon running in the snow and playing hide and seek in the woods with a few friendly monsters that seemed happy to tag along. One of them, a kind of snowflake bird, tried to humour them but quickly gave up as neither Frisk nor Swan laughed at his puns. To be honest, the poor monster wasn’t skilled for that…          

They also walked through a few odd puzzles which were easy to solve; Sister Maria often gave them some to do as homework, to train their brain. Well, Frisk wasn’t that good but it was nice to see Swan trying to solve them by himself, sticking his tongue out in a gesture of intense concentration. Giggling, Frisk played with the fluffy dark locks, messing with them even more. Grimacing, Swan tried to do the same, in vain. Frisk was always stronger than him.

 

As they rolled into the snow, a sudden shuffles coming from the woods made Frisk froze, and they brought a finger to their lips to warn Swan. The boy sat back and pulled the hood on, in case it was Papyrus coming back. Suddenly, two silhouettes came out and the two humans shared a surprised look when they identified the monsters as some kind of dogs.

They were pretty much of the same appearance, both having round snouts, floppy ears and were covered by dark hooded robes with the face of the other printed on it. They would have seemed rather friendly if it wasn’t for the axes they were both holding. Swallowing hard, Swan exchanged a worried glance with Frisk. He seemed to be thinking so hard you could almost see the clogs working above his head. As the two dogs had gotten dangerously closer, Swan finally had an idea.

Grabbing Frisk’s shoulders, he quickly tried to explain to them he needed to sit on them for the plan to work. Taken by surprise, Frisk almost tripped at the sudden weight. Once he was stable enough, Swan closer the jacket to hide Frisk’s head. He read in his animal book that dogs didn’t have a good sight, and hoped those weren’t too different from those on the surface.

Sniffing something odd, Dogamy and Dogaressa slowly circled the odd silhouette with confused faces.

 

“What's that smell? (Where's that smell?)” They said suspiciously, one echoing each other as they spoke. “If you're a smell... (... identify yoursmellf!)”

Unable to see what was happening because of the closed zipper, Frisk felt a cold sweat covering their nape. That wouldn’t do, they needed to say something to maintain this cover! Clearing their throat loudly, the 8 years old tried their best to take a deep voice.

“I’m Mc Rib. Lamb, Mc Rib.”

“Rib…? (Can we chew it?) I don’t know this name. (Let’s have dinner!)” The couple answered, exchanging a confused glance over their axes. Feeling Swan holding back his breath, Frisk decided to keep going.

“I’m Sans and Papyrus’ cousin. I come from…well… I travel a lot.” They rushed, suddenly panicking. What if they asked more questions? Besides, Mc Rib was probably just a fictional name. Damnit, if they had to fight-

“Oh! Sans and Papyrus’ cousin, of course!”

 

…How did everybody fall for this trick? Oh well, at last they were safe for now. Convinced by Frisk’s act, the two monsters let Swan pet them after telling them the way to Snowdin. Once the dogs left, Swan finally dropped off Frisk’s shoulders and apologized for their cramped muscles with a comforting hug.

On their way to the town, they met an odd snowman who asked for them to travel with a piece of him so he could see the world with them. The request was slightly disturbing, but Swan seemed happy to help and Frisk agreed.

 

‘ _What if you accidentally drop it?’_ The voice in their head suggested, making them groan as they ignore the statement and put the snowball in Swan’s bag.

“Do you think this snow would taste like the NiceCream from earlier?” Frisk asked and Swan seemed weirded out by the question.

“ _Frisk, I’m not sure we’re supposed to eat monster…_ ” He signed, before giving them a biscuit. “ _You can have this if you’re hungry!_ ”

 

Rolling their eyes, Frisk still took the biscuit and nibbled on it as they keep walking at a pleasant pace. From time to time, their attention was caught by a blue jacket that came along with feeling the presence inside them wanting to tear it off. Were they the reason why Frisk didn’t reacted well to the colour blue lately? And if so, then when did they “possess” them for the first time?

A pull on their sleeves brought their attention back to Swan, a worried look on his face. Giving them a reassuring smile, Frisk decided it would be for the best to think about it later. For now, they just needed to reach the town before they get too tired. The air was cold enough for them to fall sick if they didn’t find a warm place soon.

Sometimes they heard Papyrus’ loud voice getting close and hide behind trees as he walk pass them, “whispering” to himself about how he couldn’t wait to catch a human to be a part of the Royal Guard.

They also cross the road of another dog that seemed to have quite an artistic vibe as he was sculpting something that took his attention away from the two kids. Shrugging, they kept going until they emerged from the woods to a cliff. Gasping, the two orphans admired the landscape from there. Night had fallen (could they say that if they were underground?) on the wooden land, and they spotted a huge lake somewhere in the middle.

 

 _“Do you think monsters can swim too?”_ Swan asked, eyes shining. Thinking about it, Frisk came to the conclusion that if humans did, so could monsters. Yet no matter how pleasant and smoothing the sight was, there was another problem facing them. To cross from one cliff to another, they had to travel a suspended bridge.

Though determined and not easily scared, Frisk might admit swinging miles above the ground wasn’t their favourite past time. They had never liked heights. A fear that got worst once the nightmares began, somehow.

Noticing their friend’s uneasiness, Swan took their hand and gave them a reassuring smile before gesturing to his eyes. It wasn’t truly a sign language, but Frisk understood the idea behind it.

 

“You want me to close mine? I don’t know, Swan… Will you be fine if I do?”

The look they received in return was the one of someone clarifying the fact they might be deaf, but not blind. The idea was simple: Swan would walk side by side with Frisk, holding their hand. Yet the two of them barely made three steps that Frisk froze. Patient, Swan waited for them to nod before taking a few other steps, and so on. He didn’t rush, knowing Frisk trusted him.

And miles under the Mountain, it was all that really mattered: trusting each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm honestly having trouble writing a "proper" Sans. So if you gives have anything they would like to comment on, don't hesitate to leave a short review! Love you guys <3


	7. Chapter 6: DisaBONEtment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again to the fantASStic Grayscales for her proof read of this chap! I would have been unable to update without her <3 There's a lots of siblings feels in this one, and a bit of angst. be warned~

_One step._ _Take a breath._ _Two steps._ _A cold sweat rolled down their spine,_ _making them_ _shiver. They squeezed_ _the warm and comforting hand_ _that was guiding them._ _Repeating the action, over and over until the difference of ground is palpable_ _, t_ _he snow once again muffling their steps._

 

Eventually Frisk opened their eyes again, Swan’s bright smile a few inches from their face. He didn’t sign, but they knew what he was thinking.

‘ _You did it_!’

“I did.” Frisk smiled, puffing out their chest in a playful manor and pretending they weren’t previously scared out of their wits, balancing above the valley. Playing along, Swan gave them his best amazed expression before giggling and bringing them into a hug. Burying their nose into the fluffy hoodie, Frisk sighed and enjoyed the calming embrace. It’s been a while since they were able to have a moment like this. Lately, it had been Frisk who comforted Swan, not the other way around.

 

‘ _Pathetic…_ ’ the voice in their mind spat out, though less violent than usual. Raising an eyebrow at this sudden change, Frisk decided that the sibling moment was over and that they should go back to searching the town. No matter how warm Swan’s smile was, it wasn’t enough to dry their soaked clothes. Besides, they were both getting tired.

Perhaps it was just their imagination, but Frisk could swear they were hearing the rumours of a town somewhere close. They might reach Snowdin faster than expected, which wasn’t an unpleasant thought. Without letting go of Swan’s hand, they began to quicken their pace. Now, the tune of a Christmas song was reaching their ears, making their heart beat faster with glee.

But of course, things couldn’t be that easy, could they?

It was Frisk who heard, too late, the uncommon laugh of Papyrus before the tall skeleton suddenly crossed their path, holding a plate of Spaghetti.

 

“NYEH HEH HEH, HUMANS WILL BE UNABLE TO RESIST THOSE GREA- HEH!!!”

The skeleton’s eyes widened as he spotted the two children, and they would’ve laughed if the situation was any different. Shocked, the skeleton dropped his plate, a worrying sound slicing through the air. Was that spaghetti made of cement?

 “COUSIN MC RIB!! IS THAT- IS THAT A HUMAN NEXT TO YOU???”  The skeleton yelled, bringing his gloved hand to his skull in an exaggerate expression. “IMPOSSIBLE! THAT MEANS THAT I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL FINALLY BE ABLE TO CATCH ONE! UNDYNE WILL BE SO IMPRESS, SHE WILL PROMOTE ME TO VICE CAPITAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARD!! NYEH HEH HEH!!!”

 

A shiver ran down Frisk’s spine as they desperately glanced around for a way to escape. There was none: clearly, they would be unable to cross the bridge fast enough, because of their fear (unlike the popular saying, fear did NOT in fact give them wings) and the other way around was already blocked by the tall skeleton. Gulping, they realised that fighting was the only option. They felt Swan’s hand clench around theirs as Papyrus took a step closer, asking him to step away and admire his talent. Frisk wished Swan wasn’t deaf so they could urge him to step away and call for help. But to who would they ask anyway? Toriel would never leave the Ruins, and they didn’t trust the shorter skeleton.

 Relief grew in their chest when Swan let go of their hand, as Papyrus got ready to pull their soul out. Frisk expected Swan to avoid confrontation. It wasn’t for him, that’s all. Fighting was their duty.

 

That’s why, when the ten year old suddenly jump between them and got his soul extracted instead of theirs, Frisk and Papyrus both gasping in unison. Confusion was showing on both the human and skeleton’s face.

 

“I DON’T UNDERSTAND… WHY DID YOU DO THAT, COUSIN? AND WHY IS YOUR SOUL RED…?” Papyrus spoke, sweating as he glanced between the two figures. Taking a deep breathe, Swan signed ‘ _I’m sorry_ ’ and finally brought a hand to the hoodie to pull it down with a determined expression on his face.

The light inside Papyrus’ eyes seemed to fade and his shoulders seemed to subside with an invisible weight as he clenched his fists.

“I DON’T UNDERSTAND, COUSIN… NO, HUMAN. WHY?”

Swan threw a glance to Frisk and glance back to the skeleton, signing the words ‘ _Family_ ’ and ‘ _Protect_ ’. Feeling an odd warmness in their chest, Frisk took a few steps to stand by Swan’s side.

“He said he had to protect his family.” Frisk said, joining their hands. Swan was trembling, they could feel it now. He must have used all his determination to take this action. Papyrus seemed caught off guard by the two of them, before shaking his skull vigorously.

“I- I DO NOT CARE. YOU STILL MADE A FOOL OF ME, HUMANS. PRETENDING TO BE FROM MY FAMILY AND EVEN FOOLING MY BROTHER!! HOW DARE YOU!” He yelled, pointing at the two of them. Swan barely had the time to push Frisk before a bone hit him in the shoulder, causing him to jolt with pain. He hadn’t seen it coming. Was it the skeleton’s power?

“Swan!” Frisk screamed, even though their brother couldn’t hear them. Then, they turned to face Papyrus who’s left eye was now glowing orange. “Stop it! My brother can’t fight! He can’t hear the attacks coming!”

“IT’S TOO LATE, SECOND HUMAN.” Papyrus said, his expression mixed between confused and hurt. “I WILL CATCH HIM, AND THEN CATCH YOU. LIKE THIS, I WILL ACCOMPLISH MY DREAM.” And on those words, he threw another couple of bones that Swan barely managed to avoid before tripping, losing his glasses. Seeing this, Papyrus seemed to hesitate and it reflected in his attacks, the bones oddly avoiding Swan from a few inches as he desperately patted the snow to find them. Standing helplessly close to the fight, Frisk was biting their nails and sweating. They had to do something, Swan’s soul would not last if he took just a few other attacks…

 

‘ _Stab him, then! You have a knife, remember? Stab the bloody skeleton_.’ The voice in their mind suggested, and Frisk froze as they remembered the Swiss knife in the back pocket of their jeans. ‘ _That’s right! No need to play fair. Do us a favour and save your useless brother!_ ’

The word useless had angered Frisk far more than the other things the voice had said. Furious, they tried to mentally chase the presence away. Swan was anything but useless. With a determined scream, they made a snow ball and threw it at Papyrus, making him gasp.

“HEY, SECOND HUMAN. THAT’S CHEATING!”

“I don’t care!” Frisk screamed, taking a glance at Swan who was panting hard on his knees, holding his broken glasses with a pained expression. “Leave my brother alone!” And one those words, they began to threw as many snowballs as they could at the skeleton, making him yelp.

“STOP IT! STOP CHEATING! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, ONLY PLAY FAIR!”

“It’s not playing fair if you pick on a disable child!” Frisk snapped back as their tenth ball hit the skeleton in the shoulder. “You have a brother! You wouldn’t let anyone hurt them, right?”

Papyrus froze at this, and Frisk thought they had won until the orange glowing reappeared in his eye.

“THAT’S RIGHT. AND THAT’S WHY I NEED TO CATCH YOU TWO. I WANT SANS TO BE PROUD OF ME FOR CATCHING HUMAN, AND ENTERING THE ROYAL GUARD!!! I’M SORRY HUMANS, BUT I HAVE TO!”

And before they could say or do anything else, both Swan and Frisk were targeted by a huge bone. A second after, everything turned pitch black. The last thing Frisk saw was a blurred out blueish figure, right in front of them…

Then, only darkness.

 

XXXX

 

Hypnagogia: the experience of the transitional state from wakefulness to sleep. A word Swan would learn in a few years and that describe perfectly the state he was in when he began to feel the throbbing pain through his whole body. Blinking slowly, he quickly closed his eyes as he was blinded by the lamp above his head. Shifting, he felt a familiar hand on his cheek. Turning to his left side, he finally opened his eyes and recognised the blurry vision of Frisk’s worried face. They were both alive. Unable to hold it, Frisk pulled him into a tight embrace, making them both hiss at the pain. Knowing it has been hard for them to witness the fight and grateful for their intervention, Swan patted Frisk’s trembling back before petting their hair. If Home was a person, they were each other’s one and they couldn’t bear the idea they might have lose their sibling so easily. As children, they were never truly aware of the potential dangers of the Underground until this confrontation with the skeleton.

Speaking of which, where was he? Letting himself fall into a sitting position, Swan glanced around. From the forms he could recognise, they were in a wooden basement. Weird columns were dividing the room in two, but it was obviously large enough for them to escape if necessary. However, it was a choice they would have to take later, as both of them were obviously too exhausted to run away from the tall monster. A few steps away, Frisk recognised a bowl filled with dog food (what on earth?!) and a chewing bone. Did the skeleton consider them as… pets? A paper next to Swan’s bag caught their attention and they picked it up with a grimace at their cramped legs before sitting next to Swan, the boy resting his head on their shoulder.

 

“SORRY, I HAVE TO LOCK YOU IN THE GUEST ROOM UNTIL YOU WAKE UP.

FEEL FREE TO MAKE YOURSELF AT HOME!!!

REFRESHMENT AND ACCOMODATIONS HAVE BEEN PROVIDED.

-NYEHFULLY YOURS, PAPYRUS.”

 

Not sure how to feel about it, the two children just sat in silence, glad to realize Swan’s minor injuries have been treated magically. Maybe it was the ghost who took care of them while they were unconscious? Swan will make sure to thank them later, and ask answers to his many questions. Suddenly, light came from the stairs and the two skeleton figures came down, walking next to each other. Unlike Frisk, Swan was glad to see Sans but clenched his sibling’s hand when he recognized Papyrus who seemed somehow guilty as he avoided looking at them.

 

“sup’ kiddos.” Sans began with his usual grin, as if the situation was perfectly normal. “hope my brother’s strength didn’t disa _bone_ t you.”

“SANS!” Papyrus shouted, hands resting on his pelvic bone. “NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO MAKE PUNS.”

“sorry bro. I can’t help my funny bone.”

Unable to hold back any longer, Frisk snickered at the puns and covered their mouth with a hand. Swan wished they had their glasses so they could keep the string of the conversation.

Still smiling, Sans snapped his fingers and suddenly a pair of glasses appeared in front of Swan who gasped before pulling them on. He could see!

 

“you seemed to have trouble without ‘em, and my brother was too _blind_ to see it so I repaired them myself.” Sans explained casually, shoving his hands inside his pocket. Grateful, Swan started to sign with his hands.

“ _Thank you.”_ He signed, and Frisk narrowed their eyes suspiciously when the skeleton seemed to tick at it.  However, it barely lasted a second so it wasn’t the time to alarm Swan about his odd behaviour. Clearing his throat (how?), Papyrus took a few steps before joining his hand behind his back and glancing at Sans before looking back at the kids.

“WELL. IT SEEMS WE BEGAN OUR RELATIONSHIPS ON THE WRONG FOOT, HUMANS -AND NO PUN, SANS!- BUT LUCKILY MY BROTHER EXPLAINED HOW THINGS WERE TO ME.”

 

The two children exchange a glance, confused and slightly worried about what the shorter skeleton might have invented to get them out of trouble. Behind his brother’s back, Sans gave them a thumb up with a wink.

“SANS EXPLAINED THAT IF YOU DID ALL THIS TO GET SO CLOSE TO ME… IT’S SIMPLY BECAUSE YOU, HUMANS, WANTED TO GO ON A DATE WITH I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS!” The skeleton revealed, posing as his scarf somehow flew behind him.

“Huh.” Was Frisk’s best answer as they slowly blink. Wasn’t dating something for adults? “Well…” but before they could say anything, Swan tugged on their sleeves and signed something. “Oh! I see!”

“WHAT IS THE HUMAN SAYING SANS?” Papyrus asked, confused as Sans tried not to smile and give up his cover.

“Swan said it would be an honour to be friend with someone as great as you, Papyrus.” Frisk smiled, discreetly high fiving their brother. “And I would be happy to go on a date with you myself!”

“EXCELLENT!” Papyrus yelled, sparkles appearing around him.

“don’t you mean eggscellent?” Sans puffed, winking at the two children. “well. let’s head upstairs. there’s a storm outside, and no one wants to be snowdin.”

“SAAAAAAAANS!”


	8. Chapter 7: Alone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, the wonderful Gray helped me by proof reading this chapter! Thanks so much buddy, I could never publish without your help!  
> I hope everyone will like this chapter as well~

Gasping for air, his skull was gleaming from sweat when Sans woke up that morning. Rubbing his face with a shaking hand, the skeleton tried to forget about the horrific images still dancing in his mind.

It has been a week since the last reset, yet the nightmares started reoccurring almost every night. Taking a deep breath before heading towards the bathroom, Sans thought it was probably due to the two humans living under their roof.

When his brother realized none of the kids had the money to stay at the inn, Papyrus jumped on the occasion and suggested they stayed with them. Obviously, Sans wasn’t pleased by this sudden change of situation but had to admit the two behaved well. Papyrus had been especially joyful and lively lately, and it was all that mattered to him.

Frisk adopted a friendly behaviour with Papyrus and the other kids, getting along with everyone easily. His brother gave them a guided tour of Snowdin the first day and even went as far as suggesting they should spend time at school with other children. His worries about a possible accident were proven wrong when he came back from work and saw them playing in the snow with Kid, an armless monster that was too clumsy for his own good. Sans had felt a thumping from behind his ribs. How was it possible for them to go from a soulless killer to that friendly child?  

Walking down the stairs, the skeleton stopped and glanced at the couch, the two children’s new ‘bed’. The cushions were all over the place and making sure Papyrus wasn’t around, he snapped his fingers and used his power to put them back in place. He might be a lazy bones, but he could be handy sometimes.

Chuckling at his own joke, calmer than earlier, he headed towards the kitchen and smiled fondly when he saw his breakfast ready for him, a paper with written “SANS” and a skeleton face drew on it lying next to the plate. Papyrus truly was the best brother.

Chewing lazily on one of the now cold pieces of toast, his attention went back to the humans. The second mystery was Handsome. Shy, always standing behind Frisk and never participating to the children’s games, Swan was a new tangent in the Reset equation.  Something must have brought this quiet child to the Underground as Frisk fell alone until now. But what? What kind of strength must he possess then? The kid barely communicated at all, either writing or passing by Frisk.

Sighing as he massaged the back of his neck, Sans didn’t seem to feel very hungry anymore. Mentally apologising to Papyrus for the waste, he threw the last piece of burned bread into the bin. It was never too early for a nap, and the skeleton was feeling tired already from all the thinking. Dropping onto the couch, it didn’t take long for him to fall into a dreamless sleep.

XXXXXX

Watching Frisk having fun with other kids was painful, even worse than at the Orphanage; he actually felt completely forgotten this time. Frisk was barely talking to him anymore, always running outside to play with Monster Kid and Bellatrice the sheep. Clenching his cold hands, Swan felt slightly nauseous and uncomfortably hot in his chest as he watched the three children playing pirates from afar. Eventually they had stopped including him in general.

 Sign language was apparently as boring to monsters as it was to humans and they stopped trying quickly. Even Frisk seemed slightly bothered when they had to translate for him.

It was so painful, as if his soul was shattering and his heart beating too fast, his breathing turning harsh and his chest falling heavily. Clenching his brooch, he prayed for everything to stop. Everything seemed suddenly too bright, too loud. The laughs of the children reached his ears in a distorted melody. Shaking his head, he stood up from the spot he was hiding from and headed back to the skeletons’ home.

Opening the door as softly as possible, he was surprised to find Sans asleep on the couch. Unsure of what to do, he stood up awkwardly in the hallway before deciding to stay in the kitchen, the only other room they were allowed to except the bathroom. Papyrus had given him an old drawing pad and colouring pens to pass time and he was attempting to draw Toriel when the ghost appeared. Surprised, Swan jolted and accidentally spilled the pens all over the floor. Blushing, he hurried to pick them up before sitting back as straight as a match.

Gaster stared at him until it become truly awkward and then pointed at the boy’s chest, before extending the index fingers of both hands to bring them toward each other twice using a jabbing movement.

 _Hurt_. The monster saw right through him.

Trembling from his head to his toes, Swan sniffled and nodded. Rubbing his nose and pushing up his glasses, he tried to smile to reassure the ghost but only ended up letting out a quiet sob Floating closer, Gaster kneeled in front of the human to be at the same level with him. From his blurred vision, Swan realised the monster didn’t truly have legs; he ended up in a moving dark cloud. Once he was sure the child was looking at him, the ghost began to sign again.

 _“Be determined. Determination is our only home against_ _the_ _Darkness.”_

Swan could only glance at the ghost with a confused expression. If determination was the key, wouldn’t Frisk be enough help? They were much more determined than him.

“ _I don’t understand_.” He signed with a deeper frown. “ _Why us? Why…why me?_ ”

Finally, the words that haunted him since they ran away were expressed. He wasn’t strong nor courageous. He could avoid attacks, but not hit back. He wasn’t even able to play with other children!

A holed and dusty hand squeezed his knee, when swan realized that he was starting to cry again Picking up a napkin from the table, he dried them away and blew his nose before glancing shamefully at the ghost.

A faint light was shining in their pitch black eyes for the first time since they met. It was an unexpected reaction but it managed to calm the boy down.  Now sure he wasn’t crying anymore, Gaster moved his hands again.

“ _You will understand soon enough. You are the shield, and Frisk the sword. Monsters need you both_.”

And on those enigmatic words, the ghost vanished once again. Left alone, Swan brought a hand to his chest and felt his heart beating slowly. A shield… Staring at the drawing he was doing before the apparition, Swan seemed lost in his thought when he suddenly pushed it away and took a blank page, armed with his pencils.

 

XXXX

It was hunger that finally woke Sans from a peaceful nap. Yawning, he lazily scratched at his collarbone. He was going to teleport to Grillby’s place, when something caught his attention; the kitchen door had been opened. Was Papyrus home? No, he would have woke him up and scolded him for being so lazy. Frisk? Impossible; he had developed a sixth sense that forced him to wake up if the kid was around. Only one option left, then. Handsome.

The kid was sitting at the end of the table, drawing with a concentrated expression. It was funny, to see him with his tongue sticking out and his glasses half slipped from his round nose. Sans never realised the kid had freckles before. Sensing he wasn’t alone anymore, Swan raised his head and seemed surprised before smiling timidly.

“hey handsome.” Sans grinned as he came closer to take a look at the drawing. “aren’t you a handy human?”

Swan seemed amused by the joke and once again, the skeleton was surprised how good he was at reading lips, especially when monsters like him didn’t have any. Swan pushed himself to give some space to his host, and Sans’ eye sockets grew wide when he saw what the kid was drawing.

The two characters were obviously Frisk and he. The stripped jumpers and the hair were pretty recognisable. In any other circumstances, Sans would have mused about the kiddo’s talent. But right now, he was trying hard to keep his calm as he couldn’t help but focus on a small detail.

Frisk was holding a knife.  

His expression was dark and cold suddenly, and Swan bit his lips. His eyes kept glancing from his drawing to the skeleton. Did he do something wrong? Maybe the monster didn’t appreciate humans as much as his joke suggested… However the moment passed and soon the light was back in the pitchy black eyes sockets.

“sorry kiddo. was surprised how knife this pic was.” Sans joked as he hide his shaking hands inside his pockets. Blushing, Swan played with his brooch and smile timidly. He has never known how to take compliments, especially when it was about his drawings. The skeleton calmed down a bit at the sigh: he remembered how Papyrus was at the same age. His exuberant brother used to be shy too, until he met Undyne and the two became friends.

“ _Do you think Frisk will like it?_ ” Swan wrote on the little notebook he kept with him and Sans raise an invisible eyebrow. It wasn’t the first time the kid seemed to be worried about their sibling’s loss of interest this week. Sitting next to him, Sans tried to look as friendly as possible.

“hey there, pal’. Frisk and you make a nice _pear_.  I’m sure they will _otter_ ly love it.” He said with a wink before his grumbling stomach reminded he woke up earlier.  “I’m going to grab some food, kiddo. wanna come with me to a good friend’s place? be careful thought, he can be too _hot_ to _hand_ le the first time around.” He chuckled. Swan seemed confused, but his expression lightened up at the mention of food and he agreed with a nod. Throwing an anxious glance towards the window where Frisk, Bellatrice and Kid were trying to climb a tree. Following his gaze, Sans rubbed his nape. The kid must be feeling _bone_ ly…

“don’t worry, handsome. It’s just you and I. Pap’ will know where to find us. I know a special shortcut, just take my hand.”

Trusting the monster, Swan took the bony fingers into his and gasped. Those were as warm as human skin, somehow. Grinning, Sans snapped his fingers and suddenly, they disappeared

Swan lacked words to describe how it felt. One second he was still in the kitchen, then everything turned pitch black, his stomach flipped and his chest felt uncomfortably compressed, blocking his lungs, and the minute after he found himself gasping for air and shaking like a leaf inside a crowed, warm restaurant.  Holding the human with a strong grip to make sure he stayed on his feet, Sans wondered if he should have warned him before teleporting. Before he could say anything, the familiar bark of Doggo called him. 

“Hey Sans! (hi Sans)” Dogamy and Dogaressa greeted, sitting at the same time and watching the card game between Doggo and Greater Dog. The four of them were sitting at the usual table at the left side of Grillby’s. Facing them was a drunk rabbit (Sans hadn’t talked to him often but still gave him a little wave) and a few other familiar faces were present, caught up in games or light hearted conversation. Walking from one table to another in swift moves where Grillby, who spot the two of them as he brought a nice cream pot to a beautiful pink lizard sitting in one corner.

“hey pal’. my heart feels warmed up by the sight of you.” Sans joked with a wink and Grillby coughed a few sparkles as he walked back to his bar before tilting his head towards the child standing behind Sans. Swan was staring with wide eyes and his jaw dropped in a silent “woah”. Somehow, seeing the fire element was more impressive than any monsters he has met so far. Grinning, Sans gently pushed him towards the stools and helped him get on one as Swan was pretty short sized.

The smell was even more appetizing from here, he realised. It felt a bit like being back to Toriel’s place, waiting for the pie to be out of the oven and then eating together before bed time. There was an odd feeling of “home” here too.

“ _I like this place_.” Swan signed without a thought. Staring at him, Grillby did nothing for a few seconds before what was probably a mouth formed on his face, surprising both the skeleton and the human. Then he put the glass he has been washing back into the sink, and signed back.

“ _Sans’s friends are welcomed here. Feel free to come whenever_.”

“Oh my, I’m surrounded by handy friends, heh.” The skeleton joke, though a bit puzzled. He forgot Grillby knew sign language too.  Since he wasn’t a chatty monster and eventually dropped a few words when needed, the bartender hasn’t used it for ages until now.  “tell me, buddy. you like, hmm, burgers and fries?”

It was like telling a child he would get a double slice of a birthday cake; Swan’s face brightened up so much at the mention of fast food that he could have been put in a Christmas tree. Chuckling at the communicative enthusiasm, Sans ordered two of both. Nodding, Grillby disappeared in the kitchen and the skeleton turned on his stool to face the excited boy, wondering if he should question him now. How much did Swan knew about the resets? About the _death_? Did he just randomly draw Frisk with a knife or was it a reason behind it?

Grillby decided for him as he came out of the kitchen with two steamy plates that Sans made sure to joke about. As for Swan, his mouth was watering as he thanked god for creating burgers. Thanking the fire element who seemed pleased when he went to serve other customers, the human took a large bite of the sandwich and felt like the doors of Heaven just opened to him. It was the most delicious thing he have ever eaten, Toriel’s pie included. Eating enthusiastically, Sans was watching him with a fond smile. He wouldn’t be surprised if the boy was the reason Frisk acted so pacifistic this time around.

 Without him realising it, he began to answer the child as he spoke to him with his small hands, even signing a word of two as he spoke. His gestures were rusty but Swan didn’t point it out. It felt actually nice, to have somebody to talk to. As customers began to leave, even Grillby join them in the conversation, coughing a few sparkles at Swan’s praises about his cooking.

Swan has never felt more at home than since they felt into the Underground. Even if the temperature was low, he was feeling warm inside.

 

 

[Fanart of Gaster and Swan](http://thefrenchbookworm.tumblr.com/image/143598645342)

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fanart was made by the bloody awesome thefrenchbookworm, who's both the most brilliant artist I know and my best friend.


	9. Chapter 8: Kids

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All thanks go to the amazing Pupper whose help was truly precious to proof read this chapter! Thanks a bunch dear!

« ENJOY YOUR MEAL, HUMAN ! »

« don’t you mean _bone_ appetit ? »

“SAAANS!!!”

 

Watching the brothers having their usual argument about puns made the two humans smile as they joined their hands under the table.

A few minutes ago, Papyrus and Frisk had slammed the door of Grillby’s with worried expressions and making everyone jump off their seats, except from the bartender who somehow didn’t even blink, only pointing to Sans and Swan before going back to his work. After a quick lie from Sans to calm down the two siblings (“the kiddo was hungry, pap’.”), the skeleton and the human calmed down enough to sit with them and order lunch.

Frisk wasn’t blind to the blatant lie though and when they were sure the two brothers were caught up, they go through their bag and pulled something off. Swan's face lightened up; they had his notebook!

 

As the boy signed “ _Thanks!”_ Frisk smiled before letting their head rest on Swan’s shoulder with a sigh. Thinking something happened to their brother when the game stopped and Kid pointed out Swan was gone had opened Frisk’s eyes. If they were honest, they haven’t been kind with him lately. The thing was, monsters were kinder than humans. None of the other kids tried to pick on them for looking different since no one was the same down there. It felt nice to play with everyone for once and so they had decided to enjoy it as much as possible, forgetting about Swan. It had been selfish of them and it was hard to acknowledge that.

They should probably apologise but as determined as they were to be forgiven, Frisk wasn't someone who could say the words, not yet. That’s how kids were, Sans thought as he eyed the two sitting on the opposite seat. He barely remembered how he acted at this age with Papyrus, probably being the typical big brother. But that was in another time. It seemed so far away now; his memories couldn’t recall those kinds of things anymore. Sometimes flashback will haunt his dreams but no matter how much he stretched his hand to catch it, the images would fade in the morning.

 

Sighing, he teased Papyrus for finally agreeing to eat at Grillby’s before letting his gaze follow the bartender. Grillby was undeniably attractive and if Sans was being honest, he wouldn’t mind getting him dunked in his bed. Trying to stop this flow of thoughts before it become too hot to handle, the skeleton served himself a glass of water. There were children here, after all.

“so kiddo, how did your date with my bro’ go yesterday?” He asked with a friendly smile aimed at Frisk. Not trusting them didn’t mean he couldn’t try to at least pretend to be their friend, at last for Papyrus’ sake.  His brother truly cared about the two humans.

“It was cool!” Frisk answered, their expression brightening. “He showed me his car figurines collection, and we ate spaghetti!”

“NYEH HEH HEH, I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WAS THE MOST CHARMING DATE EVER!!!” Papyrus said with sparkles appearing around him as he posed. “HOWEVER, I COULDN’T RETURN THE HUMAN’S FEELING SO WE DECIDED TO STAY FRIENDS.”

“ I be _leaf_ it was _bone_ to happen.” Sans said with a wink, and a customer snorted as they passed next to their table.

“SANS!”

“It’s ok, Papyrus.” Frisk said, patting their gloved hand. “You’re a _koala_ ty friend.” They added with a snort. Papyrus swore to never leave the kid alone with Sans again, they were picking up his punny habit.

“It’s not my fault if we’re so _glov_ able bro. They are completely s _mitten_ by us.” Sans said with an affectionate smile towards his little brother who only rolled his eyes and sighed, though he seemed pleased by this one. Glancing at Swan with the same look as Sans, Frisk teased their brother by playing with their hair, making the boy giggle.

As they got ready to leave, Sans patted Swan’s shoulder to catch his attention and pointed at his notebook.

“can I get a page, kiddo?”

Nodding, the boy tore one off and handed it to the skeleton. Smiling, Sans hurried to write something and folded it properly before sliding it inside Grillby’s pocket as he came to clean up their table.

“put it on my tab, pal’.” Sans said with a wink before joining the little group outside.

As he closed the door behind him, a smug smile brightened his face when he heard someone scream as Grillby suddenly begun to violently cough sparkles. Apparently, his pick-up line has been too hot to handle for the bartender.

 

The rest of the afternoon went quiet when the kids and Papyrus fall asleep on the couch for a nap. Smiling at the sight of his little brother nested between the two humans and hugging a Mettatton plush, Sans yawned and decided to head for his bedroom. There was no more space on the couch except from a small spot next to Frisk. No matter how changed the kiddo seemed to be, the skeleton was unable to trust them properly yet.

As he closed the door behind him, he couldn’t help but realized the tornado of dirty socks was gone. Papyrus probably came here to clean up. His brother really was the coolest, he thought before falling asleep on his comfy bed with a soft snore.

 

XXXXXX              

“…!”

Sans’ face twitched, but he didn’t woke up, didn’t want to. Caught in a state of Hypnagogia, the skeleton felt like something was trying to awoke his consciousness. No! He finally escaped from his nightmares. Why didn’t they let him rest?

“SANS!”

Pap’…?

“just five more minutes bro’…” he mumbled sleepily before suddenly opening their eyes and jerking into a sitting position, his right eye flashing blue for a second. The kid was in his room. Yet the perturbed look they showed was enough to calm him down. Grunting, Sans rubbed the space between his eyes and asked what was the problem?

“feeling _b_ onely without me?” he joked poorly but sobered up when Papyrus didn’t scold him. “hey, what’s wrong?”

“Swan isn’t home!” Frisk shouted, their eyes wide with panic. “we thought he was drawing in  the kitchen, but he is nowhere!”

Shit. This Reset was less calm than anticipated. Suddenly Frisk began to make a half sobbed sound that they try to suppress by biting their lips and the two brothers exchanged an awkward glance. Sighing, Sans pat his bed for them to sit by his side, putting his worry about the kid aside for now.

“hey, kiddo. I’m sure he’s handling though handsomely.”

“That’s not it.” Frisk mumbled with a frown, their fists clenched on their knees. “I’m sure it’s my fault. I haven’t been a cool sibling lately and he probably feels bad about it.”

“HUMAN, I’M SURE SWAN THINKS YOU ARE THE COOLEST ONE EVER.” Papyrus said with a friendly hug. “WELL, BEHIND I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS AT LEAST.”

“Thanks, Papyrus.” Frisk said with a weak smile before turning to Sans with a slight hesitation. “Thanks too.”

Shrugging, Sans stood up and pulled his jacket on before turning to the two others with a questioning look.

“Determined to find your brother, kiddo?”

“More than ever.” Frisk said as they grabbed both skeletons’ hands. Shivering at the contact, Sans counted to three before smiling. Time to go look after Swan now. And as he clapped his fingers, the three of them disappeared, leaving a silent house behind.

XXXX

_“Have you seen it…?”_

As she walked past one of the glowing flower to get back home, Undyne stopped with a frown. She wasn’t in a pleasant mood today and wasn’t up for riddles.

“Saw what?” She asked with a grunt, but the flower only repeated her words in a whisper. Frustrated, she began to move away when another one talked. Eye glowing, she began to go from flower to flower, a scary grin crossing her face as she clenched her weapon.

_“Have you seen it…?”_

_“They fell down again…”_

_“…humans…”_

_“Humans fell down…”_

_“Humans fell down in the Underground!”_

 

Good. The hunt was open now. Laughing maniacally, the monster pulled her helmet back and decided to follow the trail of the glowing plant, unaware of the presence spying on her in the untamed grass. Snickering with a vile expression, Flowey congratulated himself for his plan. Now, he just had to watch and wait…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was quite a hard chap to write for me, because it's more like a "filling" chapter where nothing truly happens.. I still hope it was pleasant to read ahah~


	10. Chapter 9: Into the Darkness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter isn't proof readed yet so don't hesitate to point the flaws to me! I also hope you will like it :>

If Heaven existed, Swan was convinced he just walked into it when he reached Waterfall.

Odd glowing flowers and the water surrounding them were displaying a dim blue light on the cavern’s walls, which provides light alongside a few lanterns and glowing crystals. Drops of water were falling from a few rocks above him, making his glasses wet. Trying to clean them with Sans’ jacket sleeves, Swan glanced at Kid walking happily in front of him, rambling too fast for him to understand everything.

Around half an hour ago, he had awoken and seeing as everyone was still asleep, decided to go enjoy a walk. As he walked outside, Kid had appeared out of nowhere and from one point to another, ended up suggesting they visited Waterfall. And before he knew it, Swan had been following the little monster into the gallery of dark, shiny stones.

Because he didn’t have his notebook with him when he left, Swan was unable to communicate except from a few nods and timid smiles but it didn’t seem to bother the dinosaur as he happily talked for two. As they get deeper into the land, they met monsters such as an old tortoise that kindly offered them a collation and scolded Kid for being so clumsy. If his expression changed when he witnessed the human child, Gerson said nothing about him and waited for them to leave to mumble in his beard.

The two kids also stopped by the Temmie village. Swan was more than happy to play with the dog monsters, but Kid grew tired of all the “Hoi!” and so they left soon after discovering the secret passage.

When they crossed their first waterfall, Swan was mesmerised by the gorgeous sight. Never before has he seen one other than in an old Adventure Comic. He tried to print the image in his mind so he could draw it for Frisk later. Stopping on the bridge they were crossing, Swan hesitantly raised his hand before touching the water and gasped; it was colder than snow!

“It’s used so Hotland villagers don’t suffocate from the heat.” Kid explained slowly, realising Swan probably didn’t understand his “Undyne is so cool” ramble. “Mum’ told me it was just an excuse from Mettaton to get water for his station resort. Hey, you like Mettaton?” Kid asked, suddenly interested and Swan shrugs; he heard about the star from Papyrus and that was all; movies wasn’t something he was interested in.

 

Pouting at the lack of reaction, Kid began to ramble about his second favourite inhabitant of the Underground. As they get across the river, Swan realised the light grew dimer. Suddenly feeling anxious, he grasped Kid’s sweater and followed him closely.

After a few minutes, something caught his attention; walking closer to the walls, he realised some old inscriptions were carved there. His eyes grew wider as he read them, his guts twitching painfully. So that’s what truly happened, centuries ago. Both sides suffered from the war, but the monsters got the short end of the stick.

He was on the verge of sobbing from his tragic discovery, but a surprisingly gentle nudge of Kid in his shoulder helped to calm him down. Smiling weakly, Swan rubbed his shiny eyes and followed the other child into the rest of Waterfall. Suddenly, Kid tripped once again over something and the two of them exchanged a surprised glance when they found a pair of ballet shoes.

Those looked old, older than Nun Maria even, and as he picked them up, Swan realised initials were carved into the insole. “ _B.L_ ”.” He wondered who must have been the mysterious B.L, to leave their shoes behind. Without thinking much about it, Swan wrapped the ribbons together and put it around his neck. Maybe Sans will know more about it, he who seemed to know about everyone.

“Yo, you look nice with those!” Kid laughed as he stood up. “Let’s keep going man, maybe we’ll meet Undyne!”

What they met next was the oddest thing Swan has ever seen in his life; was it an octopus or an onion, the monster swimming in the river was bigger than a house. He yelped when a wet tentacle squeezed them into an odd hug before they left to the next cave.

In a small room, they discovered a piano. As he let his fingers caress the wood, Swan felt a hump in his throat. Frisk often said it was the most beautiful instrument ever. But it was something Swan will never get the pleasure to hear, because of his condition. Kid poked him with his tail, and Swan realised the monster seemed as disappointed as him.

“Yo, I wish I could play too. Sister and I can’t play, because I have no arms and she only has tiny ones.” He said, nodding towards his sleeveless sweaters. It only occurred now to Swan that he wasn’t the only one with a physical disability.

They decided to exit the room, Kid surprisingly silent as they went through a dark corridor where an intimidating statue scared them. As the tunnel emerged into another cave, the two children yelped when they realised it was somehow raining there. Luckily for them, umbrellas were waiting in a bin and Swan took a green one big enough for both Kid and him to stand under.

“Man, I always get soaked when I cross this corridor so I’m glad you can hold it!” Kid smiled, hopping at Swan’s sides. The human’s expression was more open now; if he has been jealous of Frisk and Kid’s proximity the past week, he was glad to have the opportunity to enjoy the monster’s presence for once. The dinosaur reminded him of a fictional character named Zach from a book the nuns gave him for his tenth birthday: _Goodnight Mister Tom_.

“Oh, we’re coming to my favorite part, yo!” Kid suddenly exclaimed, jumping around Swan. “Close your eyes and take my ha-… sweater!”

Deciding he could trust the monster, Swan obeyed. It felt odd, to close his eyes and walk like this. It reminded him of when he woke up during the night after a nightmare, and sat in their dark room. Frisk never seemed to wake up during the night, their silhouette peacefully moving as they breathe slowly. Swan often joined them into bed during those nights, feeling more secure like this.

 

It was odd to remember all of this now, when his sibling was probably far away and asleep. Would they be upset Swan went there without them? The thought made his hands sweaty as he gulped. He should have waked them to explore Waterfall together.

He felt Kid had stopped, which he was grateful for; he didn’t want to feel guilty during such an important moment. Daring to open one eye slightly, his jaw dropped and he opened both eyes wide when he saw the view.

 In the darkest cave of Waterfall, deep under the ground was visible the King’s Castle.  As for the ceiling, a thousand blue diamonds were shining, looking like magical sky. Somehow, that’s what caught his attention the most. He missed the sky, and the stars. He missed the breathe of the wind during chilling days of winter, the nuns black dresses as they haunted the Orphanage as they guided them to the small church.

Swan wasn’t sure how long they stayed there, staring at the castle side by side.

“I wish I will see real stars, one day.” Kid whispered, unusually quiet. “I’m sure Undyne will help us to reach the surface, man.”

 

It was raining in the next room but they couldn’t keep the umbrella; a short wall was crossing their way and it was obvious climbing would be impossible with it. After a few tries, the two children realised climbing alone wasn’t doable; the rock was wet and dangerous and therefor they couldn’t grab it properly.

“I know! Climb on my shoulders, then give me a hand, man!” Kid suggested and after a few tries ending on their butts, the two of them finally managed to get on top.

“Oh, be careful, the road become a bit tricky the- waaaaah!” Kid suddenly cried as he slept off a bridge, eyes wide. As swift as a river, Swan barely had time to jump and catch him that he felt something fly above his hair. Catching the strip sweater just in time, he turned his face and turned pale when he witnessed an armoured monster standing right here. And before he could do anything but dodge while Kid was balancing above an endless pit, the knight threw a blue spare towards him. This time, he barely avoid it and the magical weapon tore some of the wool of Sans’ hoodies apart.

 

Suddenly forgetting he was actually on the verge of falling, Kid squeezed with stars in his eyes.

“Yo, it’s Undyne! Undyne came to save us Swan!”

 That was something entirely debatable, as the heroin threw a new spare towards Swan, scratching his right hand and almost getting him losing his grip on Kid who yelped helplessly.

“Yo, I think there’s a misunderstanding here!” He gasped as Swan began to slide dangerously over the edge of the bridge. Sweat was making his skin shining under the blue stones, his arms trembling from the effort. It was so painful, be he just couldn’t let go of his grip.

“Undyne, Swan is my friend! He is cool!” Kid said with teary eyes as he glanced at the darkness under his dandling feet. “Please, help us!”

Swan too, was panicking. He was the weak one; he couldn’t save Kid alone while being attacked by the so famous Undyne. Unless…

Eyes shining from determination to save his new friend, he put his last bit of strength into his arms and balanced Kid as strongly as possible by his sweater. Yelling, the little dinosaur flied above the edge of the bridge and got caught in extremis by Undyne who ran and caught him by the tail. However, the movement pushed Swan over the surface and it’s in a silent scream that he was swallowed into the darkness, his hand helplessly raised in hope of being saved.

_But nobody came and saved him._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing Monster Kid was one of the best experience ever guys. I truly hope you appreciated this chap dedicated to him!


	11. Chapter 10: After the Fall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> !!! Un proof readed chapter ahead!

He didn’t remember the last time he had emotions. After falling into the Core and becoming one with the Void, hybrid between Darkness and a ghost, Gaster has been caught in a non-existent state that slowly emptied him from feeling. He never slept, never eat, and never spoke. His memories were still there only because he used all his remaining strength to keep them. Yet the scientist could tell there were fleeting away the same way is form was slowly turning into nothing. In a few years, a few centuries maybe, there will be nothing left of him. He was just an empty shell with half a soul maintained by the Void’s power.

So where was this fright coming from? Why was he kneeling next to the small human body, his dusty phalanges looking for a pulse against the tan neck?  His sudden lack of emotional control was making his entity melt, black drops staining the blue jacket and striped sweater.

Nothing came at first, and hope was leaving place to the painful realisation that the child might be dead when he suddenly felt it. It was weak, but the human was still breathing even if unregularly. Calming down, Gaster then tried to remember what to check after a fall. Closing his eyes, he passed his left hand above the unconscious body to scan for injuries. The result was worrying; risk of concussion, bruises, a broken bone… He will need time to recover if he healed the human by himself. Was he worth it? Obviously; the freedom and safety of the monsters laid on his innocent shoulders.

 

The process was painful for him; it was as if the remaining of his soul were stretching away from each strapped part to free themselves. But if he didn’t endure it, then this timeline will sink into Darkness too.

When he was finally done, Gaster was in pure agony, barely able to maintain a physical form. Raising his shaking hand, he summoned The Room and creeped his way to the door that vanished right after. The only signs of his presence here were the black strain on Swan’s jacket and a trail of dust going from the boy to the spot where the door appeared.

The Boy lived. It was all that mattered.

 

XXX

“You!” Frisk groawled, a dangerous light flicking in their eyes as they clenched their hand around the Swifts knife. “You.killed.my. _brother_.”

They could still see the scene in slow motion from a few seconds ago, how Swan tripped and fell to save Kid. Frisk didn’t even have the time to shout his name that he was already swallowed by the darkness of the pit. They didn’t even notice the sudden joy of the Presence, how they whispered “finally!” when Frisk pulled out the knife.

Anger was taking away their judgment ability and it’s with a ferocious growl that they began to run towards the knight, ignoring Kid’s alarmed yelp. Blood was pulsing to their ears, tears were running from their eyes and their teeth were clenched so hard it hurt. The voice in their mind were cheering as they get closer, not batting an eye when the knight armed itself, targeted Frisk and…

“ t h a t’ s   e n o u g h t  f o r  t o d a y, k i d d o.”

Suddenly, two strong arms reached for Frisk and they found themselves restrained against a familiar blue jacket, Sans eyesocket scarily dark. Shivering, Frisk instantly calmed down at the sudden coldness in the air. Or was it just them?

Turning to face the monster, Sans smiled apologetically.

“sorry to interrupt. not very _sans_ itive of me.” And on those words, he vanished into a cyan flash and so did Frisk. As soon as the familiar decor of the kitchen surrounded them, he dropped the kid who began to punch him weakly, tears fleeting of their eyes.

 

“They killed him! They killed Swan!” They repeated with a last punch before hugging the skeleton’s waist tightly. Freezing, Sans tried not to push them away and grimaced at the sudden wetness of his t shirt. He will do a laundry later.

“hey there, kiddo. don’t let your hope fall down. you two get through worse, didn’t you?”

“But he wasn’t alone!” Frisk shouted, their lips trembling as they curled up on themselves. “I was here to protect him! And he was there to keep me right…” the last sentence was barely higher than a whisper, ending on half sobbed hiccups.

Sans couldn’t help but feel some pity for the kid. Past timeline put aside, he kept forgetting that they were just that: a child. And children were such fragile little things which sometimes dealt with problems too heavy for their souls.

Sighing, he finally wrapped his own arms around Frisk and rested his chin on the top of their hair.

“it’s ok. I’m sure your bro’ is in _eggscellent_ shape. now, stay here and drink something warm to dry your tears. Something as hot as grillby.” He added with a small grin. “ if pap’ came back, tell him i’m going after handsome and not to worry.”

Before Frisk could say anything, the skeleton was gone again and for the first time since they fell from Mt Ebott, they found themselves alone and lost.

 

XXX

Lilibell was the first one to spot the unconscious body. As she played Hide and Seek with Blooky and trying to keep quiet behind a pile of trash, the water element spotted something unusual. Floating closer, she realised it was a child. Opening her mouth in shock, she began to sob and the tears melted into her body.

Wondering what was happening for his friend to suddenly “speak” (she could only cry to communicate) Napstablook followed the trail of water and was surprised to find her floating above Swan.

“Oh, I know him…” Blooky said softly, before glancing around. “Oh, he must have fallen from above… oh no… what should we do…”

“B-booo oo…” Lilibell wept.

“Taking him somewhere safe?” He repeated, before his face got gloomier. “But I am not strong enough to carry him, ah…” His friend nodded, her long hair gently undulating around her face. Suddenly, she got an idea and shared it with Blooky. If they called her cousin, Grillby would surely be strong enough to carry him!

However, they soon dropped the idea as none of them had a cell phone to contact the fire element. Besides, Grillby hated humidity… Their choices were getting drastically limited when Swan finally awoke, feeling dizzy and slightly nauseous.

Yet, he seemed to feel better as soon as he realised he was apparently miraculously alive and well. Not only that, but a familiar ghost was floating close to him next to another monster he didn’t remember meeting before.

“Ah, you’re awake…!” Blooky said, smiling shyly as tears fleet from his eyes to form a hat. “I was getting worried for you…”

“Boo…” Lilibell introduced herself, but Swan couldn’t understand and so Blooky did the presentation for her. Swan was pleased to meet someone that seemed rather nice even though her constant tears were a bit unsettling.

“Did you, ah, fell from the bridge?” The ghost asked, and he answered with a nod, shivering as he remembered the threatening knight. At last, Kid was safe.

“Ah, maybe we could go home and call Sans then…?” Napstablook suggested. Realising it was probably the most logical solution; Swan agreed and followed the two friends to the ghost’s house. It was harder for him to climb the piles of trash as he couldn’t just float above them. Plus, they met an odd dummy that tried to fight him but quickly ran away after Lilibell began to cry loudly at him. As he climbed the last pile, Swan’s knees bumped into something interesting. Pulling it off from under a broken tv, the boy found an old wooden shield.

“It could be useful, to protect yourself…” Napstablook said and after another memory of the scary knight, Swan decided to keep it with him. Better be ready this time…

XXX

It’s Papyrus who answered the call, at the end of the afternoon while Frisk was occupied making water boils for pasta. Recognising Napstablook’s voice over Lilibell’s weeps, the skeleton hold the conversation for ten good minutes before the ghost was finally able to announce he found Swan.

“OH? SWAN IS AT YOUR PLACE? I’M GLAD YOU THREE ARE HAVING FUN!!! WE SHOULD THROW A FRIENDLY PARTY HERE ONE DAY!!!” Papyrus said excitedly.

At those words, Frisk froze, their heart pumping faster as a bright smile brightened up their face. Swan was alive! And even better, he was with someone they trusted! Rushing into the living room, Frisk hurried to put on their black boots and Papyrus’ old scarf before pressing the skeleton to tell them where the ghost live. They were actually surprised to learn he wasn’t a habitant of the Ruins; since that’s where they met the first time, Frisk thought he was a monster from Toriel’s neighbourhood.

It was windy and surprisingly colder outside, but it didn’t discourage Frisk who began to run, their breath coming out in white puffs. They passed across comrades from school but didn’t take the time to talk, only waving quickly at them.

 It didn’t take them too long to reach the ghost’s house. And as soon as he opened the door, They barely had time to salute him that two arms embraced them tightly. Unable to hold it, Frisk began to sob, hugging Swan even tighter against them.

“I’m so sorry!” They wept, the sound muffled by the wavy hair. “I promise to never leave you alone ever again!”

Watching the retrouvrailles far enough to give the two children some privacy, Blooky and Lilibell exchanged a happy smile. It felt nice to see family members reunited. As the afternoon turned into night, Frisk called the skeleton bros to know if they could spend the night at their friend’s place. If Papyrus seemed to hesitate, Sans told him the two of them were big enough to have a sleep over and should spend more time with their friends.

Frisk spent the evening cooking for everyone with Swan and listened to Blooky’s music after dinner while Swan was reading, Lilibell already asleep. As everyone went to bed, the ghost told them he wanted to show them a little trick and as they laid, the ceiling turned into a gorgeous sight of the Galaxy. Smiling tiredly, the two humans slowly joined Morpheus’ arms, still holding each other’s hands.


	12. Chapter 11: Return of Peace?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, it's already the third chapter that hasn't been proof readed yet. I apologize in advance for the more than possible grammar mistakes, and hope you'll still appreciate this chapter!

When they awake the next morning, dry drool on their chins and their eyes blinking sleepily, Frisk and Swan were greeted by Lilibell’s weep. The monster was quite an oddity; they discovered the previous day that she was able to use her own body element to spell letters and communicate. Even though she wasn’t able to speak it, she understood sign language thanks to Grillby and understood Swan just as well as Frisk.

It’s in a cheerful atmosphere that soon the table was set and the breakfast served. The two human had insisted on making a butterscotch cinnamon pie and the water element has been more than happy to agree; she got the recipe from Napstablook who got it from his special friend.

As she served a large slice of pie to the deaf boy, Lilibell wondered about this secretive friendship; not that she was jealous of Napstablook spending most of his time in the Ruins like today, but she still missed having him around. Except from Papyrus, Blooky was her only friend. But as long as he was happier since he met this mysterious monster, Lilibell felt like she shouldn’t mind. Blooky might be more absent, but he wasn’t like Mettaton. He would never leave her behind without a word and never come back home.

“Huuuuh… Are you alright?” Frisk asked, exchanging a worried glance with Swan.

Snapping out, Lilibell realised she had melted into a puddle of water on the floor and was stared at by the two children. Blushing from the embarrassment, she hurried to take her normal form and apologised for her behaviour with a long cry and a pat on their head. It wasn’t often that her form shifted due to her emotion, and she usually didn’t notice it happening.

The rest of the breakfast went without problems, the children asking more about herself. They seemed surprised when they learnt she had two moms but didn’t seem to be judgmental of it, unlike a few monsters.

“Love is love.” Frisk shrugged, making Lilibell smile with a fond expression. Children were sometimes more reasonable than adults, in all their sweetness and simple vision of the world. “Sister Maria said people should love each other, right Swan?”

The boy nodded with his mouth full of a large bite of pie which made the two others puff.

 

xxxx

 

Once the dishes were cleaned, Lilibell insisted on walking them back to Snowdin to make sure they were safe and once the two children had put their shoes on, the little trio left the funny shaped house.

“ _It’s like a giant mushroom_.” Swan signed and Frisk laughed, agreeing with their brother. They could feel the presence rolling their eyes in a corner of their mind but didn’t pay them further attention; it was odd, sure, but Frisk was getting accustomed to it.

Swan was delighted by the sight of their face when they properly discovered the wonderfulness of Waterfall; the little diamond reflecting on Frisk’s skin and giving it a soft blue shade, their eyes shining with marvel. The echo flowers especially caught their attention as they repeated what Frisk was saying in a soft whisper. Feeling warmer in his chest, Swan took Frisk’s hand and they walked like this, similar to when they left the Orphanage.

 

Kid was the first one greeting them, tears from relief escaping when he saw Swan all safe. He swore that Undyne must have made a mistake and thought Swan was a human, otherwise she would have never hurt him. Frisk grimaced but the boy smiled and nodded. There was no reason to tell the truth to Kid; Undyne was his heroin and it would be merciless to shatter his ideal of her.

After that, he got called back by his sister to clean his room and so the trio quickly went to see if the skeleton brothers were home, but found the house empty. Considering they might be working, Lilibell suggested they went to her cousin’s place.

They were welcomed by Grillby and a Greater dog which was the only customer so early in the morning. The guard was playing chess against himself and so Grillby came to sit at a table with the humans and his cousin. It was a bit weird to watch them interact, as they couldn’t touch each other or Lilibell could accidentally hurt the bartender. On the opposite side, Swan and Frisk were inseparable, sitting so close they seemed glued together.

Once again, Swan felt this kind of “Home like” feeling he had begun to feel at Toriel’s place. As if he was a part of a family bigger than just Frisk. As if he has been adopted by everyone and was embraced by their kindness. He was alive and loved by them. They might be monsters, but there had gentle souls.

He wasn’t an Orphan anymore. He had a proper family, here in the Underground. And without him being able to control it, tears of pure happiness rolled on his plumbed cheeks as he smiled brightly. _A family._ That was all he has ever asked for. A family he will do his best to protect with Frisk’s help; them with their determination and him with his new found shield.

 

 

Xxxx

_“Chara.”_

Frowning, Frisk turned the page of the book they were reading in the living room while Sans and Papyrus were talking in the kitchen about yesterday’s accident with the knight. The shorter skeleton had picked them up at Grillby’s an hour ago and stayed a bit to chat with his favourite fire element before teleporting with the children back at home. As for Swan, he was taking a proper bath upstairs.

Making sure no one was listening, Frisk asked the Presence to repeat themselves. They sighed with annoyance, but obeyed anyway.

“ _My name; it’s Chara. Stop calling me the “Thing”_.”

“Oh.” Frisk only said, perplexed. They never thought about it before.

 _“Of course you didn’t, stupid.”_ Chara grumbled, making them pout. Frisk wasn’t stupid; the nuns used to say they were one of the brightest children. “ _You spend more time caring about them than talking to me_.”

“Maybe because you’re a voice in my head?” Frisk said while raising an eyebrow, quickly glancing at the kitchen to make sure the skeletons couldn’t hear them.

 _“I’m not just a voice!”_ Chara shouted angrily, making them hiss from the sudden throb under their skull. _“You want to play it smart? Fine, but don’t complain if you or your dear brother die without me!”_

And just like that, Chara was off again and Frisk couldn’t help but feel slightly guilty. Judging by their voice and their way of talking, Chara was just a child like them. Maybe Frisk should have been friendlier with them. Oh well, they would apologise next time the presence manifested and will try to know more about them.

Hearing Swan walking down the stairs, they decided to forget about it for now. Somehow, they felt like it should be wiser to wait a little bit more before talking about Chara to Swan. They trusted him, but it was like one of those special secrets every children have. They were just waiting for the right moment to tell Swan a child was actually living inside their mind since the two of them fell into the Underground.

“How was the bath?” They asked instead, giggling at Swan’s frizzy hair falling above his eyes.

Swan answered with a funny movement of his hand, like your breath rising upward from your mouth in the wintertime. The bath had been warm, apparently.

“I hope I still have some hot water left for myself.” Frisk grinned while messing up a bit more with the wet curls, making Swan fidget in protest. However, they got interrupted by Sans clearing his throat.

Standing in front of the kitchen’s door, the two brothers exchanged a glanced before turning their attention back to the children.

“pap’ got a call from undyne before I pick you up, kiddos.” Sans announced, absently playing with his jacket. “the bad news is that she is _beary_ angry.” He tried to joke, though he didn’t miss the expression of fear in the children’s eyes.

“BUT THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT SHE IS COMING OVER RIGHT NOW!!!” Papyrus said with a side glance towards Sans for scaring the humans, “I’M SURE EVERYTHING WILL TURN UP WELL ONCE WE CALMY EXPLAIN HER THAT YOU ARE OUR PRECIOUS FRIENDS.”

You didn’t need to be a genius to understand it wasn’t the greatest idea of all time. Palms suddenly sweaty, Swan began to tremble, remembering how close the spares were to kill him, how the knight obviously wanted to see him dead. He wasn’t ready to face this person, not without knowing he was safe.

Feeling his heart clench at the boy’s reaction, Sans sighed and kneeled in front of him with a comforting smile.

“don’t worry _handsome_. i promise we’ll _hand_ le it well.”

Smiling weakly, Swan embraced the skeleton with his tiny arms. Sans tensed a little before relaxing and doing the same with a huff. This reset sure wasn’t like the other, and he was thankful for it. Himself was beginning to see the boy as some kind of distant relative he just met. Even Frisk felt like one now that they acted like a normal child. Sure, he was and will always be on his guards until he get the truth from them. But until then, he will act naturally friendly and protective with them. He made a promise to an old friend, after all.

However before he could say anything else to reassure the children that everything would be fine, the main door was violently slammed open as Undyne furiously walked into the house, fists clenched and showing her fangs, her single eye glowing with anger.

“You!” She roared, pointing at Sans who casually stood up and stand in front of the two kids while Papyrus sweated in the background, dancing nervously from one foot to another. “You hide the humans from me!”

“please to meet you again too, pal.” Sans said calmly with his friendless smile. “ it was a _sans_ ational entrance you made here.”

The pun wasn’t well welcomed; the second after, a blue spear pierced the wall a few inches only from his skull, making everybody but him scream. Still smiling, his eye sockets were now pitchy black, making him looks even more like the Reaper, Frisk thought with a shiver.

“ h e y   n o w, f r i e n d.  t h a t’s  n o t  h o w   w e   g r e e t   a   p a l  h e r e.”

Swan stepped closer to Frisk, clenching their hands while Papyrus called his brother nervously, his gloved hands resting on the broad shoulders. Things were taking the wrong turn, they could feel it. And it was all because of them. Suddenly, Swan stepped between the two monsters, ignoring Frisk as they call his name. Instead, he walked closer to Undyne and tried his best not to run away; the monster was terrific. Gulping, he slowly raised his hands in a surrounding move.

“Swan, no!” Frisk shouted but Papyrus caught them by the waist and hold them in place. “Let me go!”

“ _She will kill him_.” Chara suddenly said, sounding almost amused. “ _See? That’s what happen when you trust them.”_

“LET ME GO, NOW!!!” Frisk screamed and before they even realised what was happening, both Undyne and their souls materialised before them. Silence fell in the house as everybody stared at the two floating hearts with mixed emotions.

But Frisk didn’t care, and neither did Undyne. On this instant, they were both ready to fight for Swan’s life.

_And nothing will stop them._


	13. Chapter 12- Friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Grim was amazing enough to help me proof read this chapter! Thanks so much wifey ;v;

Everybody was holding up their breath at the sign of the two souls facing each other, and Papyrus let his attention drop enough for Frisk to walk away from him and stare at the fish monster with a determined look.

“Swan, come here.” They said without looking away from Undyne. They can feel Chara’s excitement in the back of their mind, how they have been waiting for this fight. “I said, come here!” They asked louder, but the boy doesn’t move.

“Wanna fight, punk?” Undyne snorted, looking down at the kid over her nose as one of her magic spear appear in her right hand. “Tch! As if I could be defeated by a human!”

“UNDYNE, PLEASE.” Papyrus said, taking a step closer to them, his hand raised in a peaceful gesture. “I’M SURE THERE’S NO NEED FOR A FIGHT. LET’S ALL TALK AROUND A CUP OF TEA LIKE GOOD FRIENDS.” However, a single glance from Undyne froze him and he sent a helpless look at Sans, who didn’t move.

“Don’t make me laugh Pap’! You can’t get all friendly with our enemies!” Undyne snapped before smiling dangerously at Frisk. Sans got interplead at the way she talked to his brother and said her name in a dangerously low tune that made her realised what she just had done. Sighing, she mumbled an apologise at Papyrus for snapping at him and told him to stay out of this.

Then she grabbed Swan by his pyjama shirt and pulled her spear right under his neck. Eyes wide open, Frisk screamed their brother’s name as he threw a fearful glance towards them.

“Fine, punk! If you win, this loser’s soul is yours! But if I win…” The monster pushed Swan in front of them before stabbing his chest with her spear, making Papyrus and Frisk scream in horror. As she pulled back, Swan fall on his knees, gasping for air and looking terrified as he stared at his own soul floating a few inches away from his chest. But this time, the colour wasn’t the same shade of red as the first time; it was a shining green. However now wasn’t the time to marvel about it. Suddenly conscious that both his and Frisk’s soul were in danger, he jumped on his feet and winced at the throb in his chest before standing next to Frisk and held their hand.

“UNDYNE, THEY ARE JUST CHILDREN!” Papyrus pleaded again but Sans shook his head and told him not to interfere.

“she won’t listen, bro.” Sans said, teeth clenched as he give a warning stare at the fish monster for the way she was ignoring the tall skeleton. He will talk to her about it later…

“BUT…” Papyrus began before sighing and glancing worryingly at his friends.  Sans was right. Undyne was obviously all fire up by the upcoming fight. “AT LEAST, DON’T BREAK ANYTHING PLEASE.” He sighed with a glance at Sans’ pet stone. Hopefully it will not be hurt…

“I’m coming, punk!” Undyne shouted with an excited smile and without a warning, threw one of her weapon right towards the two kids. Unable to think coherently, Swan did the first thing his instinct screamed to do; protect Frisk. As if it reacted to his thoughts, a sudden green shield materialised and the weapon vanished at his contact. Shocked, the two kids exchanged a surprised glance as they register what just happened. Undyne clacked her tongue with a frown but didn’t give up; instead, she summoned two more weapons with a scary smile.

“Try to avoid this, you shrimps!”

Swan gulped. Judging by the colour of his soul, he was the only one able to protect the two of them. Taking a deep breath, he glanced at Frisk who nodded and walked behind him; all was a matter of speed and coordination now. Their souls depended on it.

 

XXX

It was hard to watch without acting, but Sans knew he shouldn’t interfere; if Undyne didn’t stop by herself, then she will try again and again to trap the two kids until she succeeded. She was the Heroin who never gives up. If Papyrus’ words couldn’t stop her, then it was all up to the children. He knew that, yet his bones were shining from the sweat as he nervously played with his jacket, his eyes following the spears coming faster each time. Frisk was quick to react, almost _too_ quick as if they knew what was coming. But Swan… the boy will not last long. He was determined to protect Frisk but his body couldn’t follow; his chest was falling heavily at each breath he took, his body was obviously shaking from the effort he had to use to keep the shield as a protection big enough for them both.

As for Undyne, she was reaching her limit too; already she was using her yellow arrows as well as her spears, trying to trick the children. So far, her attacks had broken a vase and torn the children’s favourite plaid apart. Papyrus had decided to retreat in the kitchen, saying he will get lunch ready for everyone once they settled down. He was obviously pained by the situation, but was powerless against Undyne when it came to reason her.

“Just… give up…already!” Undyne panted, her attacks getting stronger as she put her everything into them. She was also covered in sweat, her soul’s shape distorted as a reflection of her exhaustion.

“Never!” Frisk shouted as they pushed Swan away from a yellow arrow, guided by Chara who somehow knew the scheme of the attacks by heart. They were a great help Frisk admitted as they avoided another spear, even though their rambling about fighting back was annoying.

“Just do it, damnit!” Undyne shouted, trying to catch Swan but Frisk pushed him away and bit the fish’s hand furiously, making her scream. “YOU BRAT!” She shouted, hitting Frisk with the back of her hand. The shock was violent enough to throw the kid flying against the sofa with a cry of pain. Eyes wide, Swan stared helplessly as Undyne turned to face him with a scary expression on her sweaty face.

“Why aren’t you giving up already? You’re weak! Just give up your soul!”

“Leave him alone!” Frisk shouted, standing up and jumping on Undyne to catch her from behind, restraining her movement.”

“What the- you damn punk, let me go!” She roared, trying to undo the tiny arms around her waist. “Why keeping fighting?”

“Because he’s my brother!” Frisk said, grimacing as Undyne pitched their hands when they refused to let go. “And I will never let you hurt him!”

“Look at him, he’s barely able to stand damnit!” The monster said with a nod toward Swan who was staring at them helplessly, his eyes half closed and his throat aching at each breath he took. “Just give up!”

“e n o u g h.” Sans suddenly said, his left eyes glowing blue as he raise his hand. Suddenly, Frisk found themselves flying above the floor with a gasp. As for Undyne, she was now standing still, a spear waiting in her hand to be thrown at Swan. Suddenly, the boy lost consciousness and his soul disappeared as well as the shield.

“Sans…” Undyne growled, even though she didn’t move. She knew better than to make the skeleton angry; the captain of the Royal Guard knew that behind the appearance, Sans possessed a dormant strength that she wasn’t adamant to wake up. Saying nothing, Sans moved his hands and Swan’s body suddenly began to levitate and slowly landed on the couch before Frisk was dropped next to him with a “Poof!” sound. Only then did the skeleton turned to smile coldly at Undyne, his eye sockets now pitchy black.

“there pal. why dontcha listen to us a little before heating up? it’s a bit disa _bone_ ting to see you try so hard to kill those kiddos.”

“So what?” Undyne snapped back, showing her fangs. “You would sacrifice our freedom for those two midgets?! Hundreds of lives for those humans?”

“they can’t fight anymore. And sorry to tell you that, but you’re in the same state pal. come on, you’re better than this.”

“SWAN AND FRISK ARE MY FRIENDS, UNDYNE.” Papyrus said, walking out of the kitchen with a huge plate of spaghetti in his hand. “AND SO ARE YOU. IT HURTS TO SEE YOU STAND AGAINST EACH OTHER.” He added with a pained expression on his skull and a weak smile as he said, “NOW, LET’S EAT AND TALK LIKE FRIENDS WOULD DO!! PLEASE.”

The monster seemed ready to fight back, before sighing and crushing her weapon with her fist.

“Tch. That’s why you can’t be a part of the guard, Pap’. You’re too soft.”

“I KNOW.” The skeleton answered, giving the plate to his brother before coming closer and hug Undyne against him tightly with a relieved expression. “I KNOW.” He repeated again as Undyne pat his back with a groan.

Sighing, Sans put the plate of spaghetti on the kitchen table and with a clap of his fingers, made plates and forks fly from the cupboard to be set neatly in front of the chairs. The upcoming talk was going to leave him with a headache, he could feel it…

 

XXX

As expected, convincing Undyne to leave the kids alone and even more to befriend them wasn’t an easy task. It took more than half an hour and lots of conviction from both brother to explain her that the two humans asleep on the couch were harmless and even kind with everyone.

“You saw it yourself, undyne. handsome saved that monster Kid right in front of your eyes and almost died for that.” Sans pointed out with a tired look while Papyrus nodded by his side.

“AND FRISK IS DOING GREAT AT SCHOOL; EVERYBODY WOULD MISS THEM.PLUS THEY BOTH HELP ME TO COOK!!!”

“But they are humans! Why don’t you two seems bothered by that? We could be free by now if you let me take them both to Asgore!” Undyne said, rubbing her face to calm down.

“UNDYNE, THERE MUST BE ANOTHER WAY!!!” Papyrus said again as he carefully took her hands in his. “YOU THREE ARE MY ONLY FRIENDS. I DON’T WANT TO SEE ANY OF YOU FIGHT ANYMORE. PLEASE.”

Silence followed as Undyne seemed to think, a concerned frown between her eyebrows before glancing at Sans.

“Who knows about their real nature except us?”

“no one, I promise.”

“…Fine. I’d give up for this time. But if anyone else discovers the truth…” She threatened before being interrupted by Papyrus’ hug, a huge smile on his face.

“THANK YOU UNDYNE!!! YOU SURE ARE MY GREATEST FRIEND!!!”

Satisfied, Sans finally relaxed and yawn. Well, all this stress had tired him to the bone; it was time for him to rest himself. Excusing himself sleepily, he headed towards the stairs before deciding it would be too much of an effort and instead dropped on the couch next to the children, falling instantly asleep.

As she took her leave, Undyne couldn’t help but agreed internally that like this, the three of them were pretty much harmless. Cute, even but that, she will never admit it.


	14. Chapter 13 - Memories arise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All my thanks and love go to Gray for proof reading this chapter. Seriously, you saved my life Pal'. This chapter is shorter than usual but I thought it would be interesting to cut it there :) Hope you guys will like it~ Don't hesitate to share your thoughts!

What Chara enjoyed the most was for Frisk to be asleep.

During those few hours, were the child held no control over their body and mind, Chara was able to visit Frisk’s memories as they pleased. It was like walking along an endless corridor, with endless doors. Some weren’t closed, which meant it was a happier memory, and the closed ones were more haunting memories that Frisk had tried to push out of their mind. Some were usually more blurred out, due to the child starting to succeed in forgetting. As for Frisk’s deepest secrets, those doors were locked by heavy chains that Chara could never manage to get past.

“Dull.” They complain, as they throw a quick glance past an open door. In that particular memory, a younger Frisk was learning the sign for ‘ _Love_ ’. Since they woke up for the first time inside the human, information and memories had somehow been transferred to Chara’s mind. Because of it, understanding the boy wasn’t a problem to them. Not that they cared; in their opinion Swan was nothing but a bother. A shield stopping them from controlling Frisk.

“Annoyingly boring.” The pale child pouted, performing a small pirouette before blindly pointing at a random door. “Let’s see this- oh.”

In front of their eyes, a familiar scene was playing out. Toriel, dressed in her old robe, was humming a familiar tune as she baked. Snapping their mouth shut, Chara brought a hand to their own throbbing chest. Toriel was like a mother to Frisk, and had acted so when the two humans stayed at her place. It was in her nature to be kind to every fallen child, but it was still painful to witness it.

 

After all, she was their mother first. Their Mother, and Asriel’s… No. Chara wasn’t a cry-baby. Suddenly upset at their own reactions, Chara slammed the door shut with an angry groan. Then, they just sat here.

 

They wished Frisk would just wake up already, Chara didn’t want to be alone today.

 

XXX

One thing Chara didn’t know was that if they had access to Frisk’s memories, Frisk now had access to theirs.

Blinking, it took them a few seconds to recognise the place they were lying in; they were somehow back in the Ruins. Recognizing the end of the tunnel above their face and the bed of sunflowers they had fallen on. Frowning, they turned to face Swan, to see how he was reacting, before realizing that their brother was nowhere to be found. Suddenly nervous, Frisk gulped and jumped on their feet to look for him.

It was so confusing; was it a dream? They didn’t know it was possible to be conscious while being asleep. Frowning, they didn’t hear the person coming from behind until two furry hands were covering their eyes.

“Guess who it is!” A cheerful but unknown voice called out. Trying to calm down from the shock, Frisk got ready to push the stranger aside but found themself laughing instead.

“Pfff, I know it’s you Asriel!”

Asriel…?  The more the dream was going on, the more confusing it get. Finally free to open their eyes as the second kid let them go, Frisk was shocked to discover a monster that appeared to look like Toriel, but smaller.

“Ahah, you got me again Chara!” He laughed and this time Frisk felt like a rock just fell on their head. Chara? Something was definitely wrong here, they could feel it. Shaking their head, they opened their mouth to tell the goat he must be confused but a familiar voice cut them off.

“Fluffybun! Chara! I told you not to play there, it’s dangerous!”

“Sorry mom!” Asriel said, a guilty look on his face as Toriel stepped in front of them. Somehow, Frisk felt guilty too even if they did nothing wrong. This odd dream sure felt real…

“You two will never stop worrying me, will you? Come here, my two little munchkins!” She smiled as she easily carried them, one child under each arms as she turned to walk back home. “Your dad just came back from work.”

“Did he find a solution to break the barrier!” Char- Frisk asked without realising it. Instantly, Toriel’s expression grew darker and she avoided the question by talking about the pie heating in the oven. Frisk felt frustrated by that. Determined to get an answer, they repeat the question and got a frowning stare from their _mom_ ster.

“Are you ok Chara? You seem a bit odd today.”

Things were much blurrier now, and Frisk wasn’t sure of what they said next, feeling suddenly sleepy. Weird. If they were already asleep then why did everything felt so distant, their three voices distorted?

“Chara?(…) alright? Chara?”

“(…) Chara! Did you hear what dad said about the barrier? (…) Chara!”

_“Chara! Wait!”_

_“Chara!_

_Chara!!_

_Chara!!!”_

_“Chara, wake up please! Chara!”_

_(…)_

_“_ _Frisk…? Why are your eyes so red?_ _”_

_(…)_

_“_ _dirty brother killer_ _.”_

_(…)_

_“Chara, it’s me, Asriel! Please stop, I’m your (…)”_

“kiddo?”

Opening their eyes with a sudden gasp, Frisk stared at the ceiling above them with a frightened look on their face. Chest falling and raising quickly as they panted, they glanced over to find Sans worriedly.

“seemed like you were having a nightmare, kid.” He mumbled, Frisk barely realising they were covered with sweat and uncomfortably hot. “hey, you ok?” The skeleton asked, getting their hand closer to the kid’s face but Frisk slapped it away with a yelp as they curled up on themselves.

“I remember.” Frisk whispered, their voices trembling and their eyes wide open with fear as they stared at their hands. They could still see them covered in crimson and ashes, hear the screams of Chara, and _Fris_ _k_ ’s victims. See their rests being taken away by the wind as they walk away with a sadistic smile on their face.

“I remember _everything_ now.” They said and when they met Sans’ eyes again, the skeleton knew they were talking about the resets. About the Darker Timelines. About Papyrus’ death.

“… _whale_.” Sans began with a sigh, before smiling nervously at the frightened kid sitting face to him. “ _sea_ ms like you need to relax first, kiddo. then, you and I are up for a walk. just a friendly chat while our brothers sleep, alright?”

Frisk stayed quiet for a while before nodding, their body still shacking and their breath still coming out loudly. With a sad glance towards Swan, they gently kissed his forehead before facing the skeleton with a determined face. They still had some questions to be answered. And if they couldn’t have a talk with Chara for now, Sans would have to do.

“Alright.”


	15. Chapter 14- Revelations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to the brilliant meltintotheair for proof reading this chapter! I truly appreciated your help!  
> I hope you guys will enjoy this chapter as well! Don't hesitate to leave your impression with a comment!

They killed them. They killed everyone. Walking behind Sans as the skeleton took the road to Waterfall, Frisk was following him mechanically, their usually bright eyes now lifeless. It was snowing and they didn’t take Papyrus’ old scarf with them, feeling like they didn’t deserve it. The cold was biting their skin but Frisk didn’t care. They deserved the pain after all they did, right?

Yet something warm suddenly fell on them and they realized with a gasp it was Sans’ jacket. Apparently, the skeleton didn’t lose his weird habit of wearing two of them at the same time.

“there kiddo. don’t want ya to be frozen to the bone right?”

“…Thanks,” Frisk mumbled, avoiding the monster’s eyes as they put the jacket on. Everything was confusing for them; the human couldn’t help but check their hands to make sure they weren’t covered in blood and dust, like in their newly awaken memories. How could all of this be real?

Sans stopped walking when he realised the kid wasn’t following anymore. He has been used to such a different reaction from them that it was unsettling to see Frisk so quiet and perturbed. This timeline sure was different from the past ones. Even if he didn’t show it, his first reaction when the kid told him that they got their memories back was fear; what if they had attacked him? But he quickly realised from Frisk’s reaction that everyone was safe and so he calmed down.

“hey. let’s take a shortcut, ‘k? grab my hand pal.”

Frisk obeyed silently, their eyes stuck on the snow under their feet and even the good old farting cushion joke didn’t make them smile. It was soul breaking and Sans genuinely hoped talking will do them some good he thought. He never knew how to deal with Frisk properly, unlike Papyrus. If it was his brother, then the kid will surely be already laughing and acting like their usual self.

“Am I going to jail?” Frisk suddenly asked. Snapping out of his thoughts, Sans glanced at them with a frown. They sure didn’t seem to be feeling well, with their trembling lips and teary eyes. Sighing, Sans dropped his idea to teleport and dragged the kid into an embrace instead. Frisk shivered, but slowly mirrored his action while burying their nose into the soft fur of Sans’ hoodie to hide their tears. “Am I a bad person?” They asked with a sniff.

“you’re a _koala_ ity kid now. i ain’t bringing you to the guard for being a good person this time.”

“But what about the other times?” Frisk insisted and Sans tensed. “I listened to Chara and everybody disappeared because of me! Even mom and, and—” Frisk began before a sob cut them out as they clenched their arms tighter around Sans. “What about Swan? Why wasn’t he here? What if I hurt him too before falling?”

“i’m sure he was safe. even at your worse, you will never hurt your _hand_ some brother,” Sans said firmly. No matter how bad the kid had fallen into insanity in the past they couldn’t have possibly done something to Swan. Sans could feel it. However, he was intrigued by something the kid had said earlier. “what did ya mean by “listening to chara?””

Frisk bit their lip, glancing around to make sure no one was listening. From what they could tell, this part of Waterfall was deserted by monsters. A river was flowing at their feet and Frisk sat to let their hand play with the freezing water with a shiver. Saying nothing, Sans decided to imitate them. Deliberating with themselves, Frisk finally opened their mouth and told everything to Sans.

It took some time, as the child’s speech was sometimes cut by a few sobs and pauses where they tried to think of what to say next. They began by explaining how every time they had felt the need to come to Mt. Ebott, they had woke up from a nightmare and how they understood it was a Reset now. How the nightmares were actually memories from their previous fights, especially Sans’ judgement in the church. How they somehow find themselves with a presence called Chara in their head, trying to push them to hurt everyone. And they did the first times, showing no mercy even to Toriel. Even to Papyrus who yet supported them till the very end.

“I think Swan is like a shield between Chara and me, and that upset them. They don’t like him; they even wanted me to leave him behind,” Frisk explained in a mumble while they rubbed their nose with their sleeves.

“so this chara that possesses you… they are the first fallen human, heh?” Sans asked, his expression unreadable and Frisk just nodded. “but why kill everyone?”

“I don’t know.” Frisk admitted as they clenched their legs against their chest. “I wasn’t able to unlock every memory…”

“it’s ok kiddo,” Sans said while patting them on the back with a comforting smile. “i’m glad you’re not a brother-killer this time around, but a brother-lover.”

Frisk smiled weakly before avoiding the skeleton eyes again. “If I have been… would you have killed me and Swan?”

Sans didn’t answer, his smile still and his eye sockets pitch black which made Frisk shiver. They knew what that look meant for they saw it many times in the past they suddenly remember. At last, Sans was honest by not denying that yes, he would have killed them again if necessary…if Frisk didn’t kill him first.

“Swan never did anything wrong right? So you would have spared him at last?” Frisk asked while playing with the blue sleeve, uneasy until Sans gently pat their back.

“Of course, kiddo. i would never hurt handsome, promise.” And it was true; Swan never fell in the past timelines and since they met he only kept Frisk in the right path. He was as this Chara said: a shield. An uncommon one yet extremely efficient at protecting everyone. Standing in a crack of his bones, Sans held a hand towards Frisk.

“I dunno for you kiddo, but I have work to attempt. I could leave you at blooky’s place and call pap’ to drop swan here with you,” Sans suggested. It was tempting, but Frisk still felt like they needed some time alone. After all, they could still remember how mercilessly they killed the shy ghost last time… Sans understood and told them to be careful before teleporting to the Hotland hot-dogs stand he held. As they weren’t many customers at that time of the day, he finally let the tension leave his body with a long sigh and spend the rest of the day putting the puzzle of the kid previous timelines in order.

 

XXX

The water was so cold in Waterfall, Frisk was thinking as they silently played close to a little pond of shiny water. Was it the same at the surface? Somehow, they couldn’t remember. All they could think about was how they, an ordinary orphan kid, possessed the power to reset time and used it to no good until… until what, exactly?

“ _Until your stupid brother came and ruined everything_.” Chara suddenly mumbled in the back of their mind, their voice sounding oddly quiet and calm. “ _If it wasn’t from this damn ghost and this stupid boy, you_ _would not even be remorseful about everything right now_.”

“It’s all _your_ fault!” Frisk yelled, clenching their fists before hitting their reflection in the water to evacuate their anger burning in their chest. “You forced me to do it!”

“ _Did I really?”_ Chara spitted back. “ _You seemed willing to obey me and the damn flower to me!_ ”

Frisk opened their mouth to talk back and were shocked to realise there was nothing to say. Yes Chara did influence them by whispering to their ears. But who was this body belonging to? Who was aiming the knife? It was them. They were the killer.

“Why…?” Frisk whispered as they embraced their legs closer to their face to hide their teary eyes. “Why do you want everybody to die so strongly?”

“Because they’re all the same,” Chara answered and suddenly, they materialised in Frisk mind. They were the same height as them, with a streaking pale face and thick brown hair. As for their eyes, those were surprisingly red. Frisk didn’t know humans could have eyes like this. Chara sighed and sat in the darkness of the mind they were trapped in.

“ _Humans, monsters. There’re no differences; they both pretend to be kind and loving. But the truth is, no one is honest. Everybody lies and pretend_ _s_ _to be kind,”_ they said in a voice so full of hate that Frisk couldn’t help but pity them. “ _Humans chased and killed so many monsters and trapped them underground. Then, when no monsters were left what did they do? Hurt each other.”_

“Are you talking about the World Wars?” Frisk asked, genuinely curious. How long as it been since Chara died? The illusion snorted, as if they said something funny.

“ _Do you really think wars_ _are the only way people hurt each other? Anyway. Humanity is the worse and I decided to run_ _away_. _”_ Chara said, their hateful expression softening as they suddenly remember how things have been then. How Asriel found them and how they found a new family. A loving one.

Following their trail of thoughts, Frisk asked how they ended up hating monsters then. Instantly, Chara’s expression grew darker and their eyes glowed for a second.

“ _Because they are the same as Humans. I thought Dad was different. I really did_.” They insisted with a sad voice. “ _But I was wrong. I heard them, one night. Mom and he were arguing and Asriel was too much of a chicken to go and listen, but I did. It was about the barrier, once again. Dad said that they might have find a solution to break it, but mom was calling him mad. She never did in front of us, it was scary.”_ Chara laughed bitterly and once again, Frisk pitied them.

_“Oh, sure he found a solution! And what a wonderful idea! He only needed seven strong souls to break the barrier and all the monsters will be free again. And by needing, I knew he meant “murdering”. Dad, no, monsters, were the same as humans_ _. They just_ _hid_ _it better.”_

“And so you decided to kill them all?” Frisk said with a confused frown. “But they were your family!”

“ _Oh, I didn’t_ _think about it first,”_ Chara explained with a nod. “ _My first plan was for Asriel to help me pass the barrier and get those bloody seven souls. I thought humans deserved it. But Asriel chickened out, as usual_.”

“Don’t be so mean, he’s your brother…” Frisk mumbled and Chara posed for a second, looking almost gullible before shaking their head and playing with their jumper’s sleeves.

“ _Anyway. The next thing I knew, Asriel had turned into a cruel plant that guided children to their death and Dad happily took their souls without a thought. Mom pretended to care, yet she let them leave the Ruins. There was no more hope, neither for humanity or monsters. I hated everyone so much! And then, you fell_.”

“Why me?” Frisk asked with a hint of distress in their voice. “Why choose me?”

 _“Because our souls connected.”_ Chara shrugged as if it was a common thing. “ _We share the same determination. Well, we did until your brother made you weak_.”

“He didn’t make me weak. He protected me from you,” Frisk said, determined to fight anyone who doubted Swan after how courageous he had been since the beginning. Chara said nothing and the second after, they were gone again.

Feeling dizzy from this, Frisk kneeled and after a long inhalation dunked their head into the water. Refreshing their mind took a new meaning on this instant.

 


	16. Chapter 15: Undyne's place

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, another unproof readed chapter! I wasn't able to find one for this time (;v;) But I still hope you will enjoy reading it as well! Don't hesitate to tell me, I don't bite ;)c

When someone knocked on her door while she was practicing piano, Undyne violently slammed her fingers against it to prove they weren’t welcome. After all, who came announced nowadays? Even Papyrus usually sent her a text a minute before entering without a knock.

Grumbling, she materialized a spear just in case and yelled a warning through the door before opening it. Whatever she had imagined, it was certainly not to see a smirking Gerson carrying a soaked and shivering human under one arm.

Puzzled, Undyne saluted her mentor and old friend and let them in with a suspicious glance to the human child. It was the one who bit her hand, and she still had the mark the strong jaw left.

“It was quite a nice song you were playing, Undyne. I wish I could visit you more often to listen to you.”

“Heh, if you came here more, I will beat yar old ass!” Undyne chuckled while bumping her chest proudly. The old Tortoise snorted and the tension seemed to left until he dropped the soaked child next to him.

“I was taking my after lunch digestive walk when I saw this little idiot the digging their head under the water of a pond. Mind you, it was so icy cold that they fainted and fell right into it! Aye, they were lucky Old Gerson was here to catch them in time.”

“Thanks for your help...” Frisk managed to say between their clacking teeth, rubbing their arms vigorously. Since they arrived to Undyne’s odd shaped house, they didn’t leave their gaze from the fish monster. What if it was a trick and they were trapped? Swan will never know until it was too late and-

“Hey punk, take off your boots and follow me.” Undyne barked which snapped them out of their worrying thoughts. Confused but obedient, Frisk struggled to take off their rainy boots off and follow the monster with one last glance to the tortoise that nodded to reassure them.

To their surprise, Undyne didn’t take them to some kind of torture chamber but to her bathroom, where she ordered them to get undress and put their soaked clothes in a basket while she get a hot bath ready for Frisk. Suddenly shy, Frisk undressed as slowly as possible while making sure Undyne wasn’t peaking, and they stayed in their underwear as Sister Margaret taught them to never let someone see them naked. 

After checking the water, Undyne give them another suspicious glance from tip to toes then nodded before leaving the room with the basket containing Frisk’s clothes. Locking the door behind them, Frisk fully undressed and finally got into the bath. They couldn’t help but gasp at how warm and agreeable the water felt against their cold feet. Taking a long breathe before pinching their nose, they dropped under the water for a few seconds. It was so relaxing somehow.

Meanwhile, Gerson and Undyne were talking around a cup of tea in the living room. The Captain of the Royal Guard was pretty confused about why Gerson interfered, him who used to fight against Humanity in his youth.

“Didn’t you spare them yourself, Undyne?” He asked while rising his eyebrows, making Undyne grumbled and stared at her hands. “Beside, this is just a child. I might have fight mages but never did I hurt innocent souls.”

“I almost did it.” Undyne admitted, still avoiding her mentor’s gaze. “You know we only need one more soul right? I just wanted to continue the fight mother gave her life for. If she has been able to pick up so many souls before, then surely one would have been a piece of cake for me.”

“You aren’t your mother, Undyne.” Gerson said in a gentle but firm voice. “She would already be so proud of you for being who you are today. I sadly knew her longer than you did and I know for sure that once all this madness about finding human souls passed, she drowned in her own guilt. Killing children would have haunted you Undyne, trust me.”

Instead of answering, the fish monster took another sip of her tea, thinking about what her former mentor had just said. Deciding to lift up the mood, Gerson get closer with a malicious smile.

“So? How is your courting of this nervous scientist is going?”

“Pfffff!!!!” In shock, Undyne spitted her tea and began to cough violently, a furious blush covering her face and  neck. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, old fart!”

“Heh, I can recognize a youngster in love when I see one.” The Tortoise snorted, patting his friend’s back. “Well, look at the time! I need to go back to the shop, but if you need advice, I used to be quite popular back in my youth!”

“Yeah yeah, I will think about it.” Undyne grumbled while walking him back to the door before embracing him into her strong arms. “Let’s have a fight, next time.” She grinned and the old man nodded with a chuckle before leaving.

Mumbling, the fish came back inside and close the door behind her before heading back to the bathroom where the human still was. A human child. Asgore will probably call her a traitor if he knew… No, better not think about it for now. Knocking loudly on the door, she yelled at the kiddo to hurry to dry up before heading to her own bedroom where she looked for an old t shirt that could probably be big enough to serve as a tunic for the kid.

“I’m leaving clean clothes in front of your door. Don’t thanks me punk, I’m only doing that for Pap’ and the old man!” She shouted, which wasn’t a lie; her friendship with those two were worth putting her position as the Captain in danger. Hopefully she will not come to regret it…

 

Five minutes later, Frisk joined her and Undyne couldn’t resist making fun of their frizzing hair from the humidity. Trying to flatten it with their hands, Frisk then hesitated before sitting in front of the monster. There was an awkward silent until Undyne asked them where the second human was.

“Swan is at home. He was very tired after…after our fight.” Frisk said, their hand clenching the sweet tea the fish monster had made for them.

“Ah. I see.” Undyne said before sipping her own beverage, an awkward silent following once again until she sighed and look at the child properly. “Listen to me, punk. I still loath humans for what they did to us, and I’m holding a grunge on you for biting me. But Papyrus and the old man wants us to be friends ok? So you bet I’m gonna befriend you. We’re going to be such good friends you will regret biting my hand earlier.”

Frisk blinked, not sure how to react. The fish monster had changed from blood thirsty killer to a let-s be-pals attitude so suddenly it almost seemed like a trap. But then, Papyrus would never be friend with someone bad, right? They jumped when Undyne slammed the table with her weird, shark-like grin.

“So, what’s the program punk? Braiding each other’s’ hair? Friendship bracelet?”

Alright. This was going to be a weird afternoon…

 

XXX

“so you _fry_ to cook with the kiddo and burned your house, heh.” Sans said, trying not to burst in laugh at Undyne’s face. “fine, you can stay here. tho i’m surprised you didn’t go to Alphys’ place, since you seems to have her in your bones.”

“What th-…” Undyne began, her face suddenly red. “Tch, Hotland is too hot for me. Besides, I can’t just ask her to stay like this…”

“you just asked us yet.” Sans teased again, all too pleased by the situation.

“That’s different!” Undyne groaned, hiding her face with one hand until Papyrus gently patted her shoulder.

“DON’T WORRY UNDYNE; SANS IS ONLY TEASING YOU!! I’M GLAD YOU CAME TO US!!!” Papyrus said, making her smile. “I WILL LEND YOU MY ROOM AND SHARE THE COUCH WITH THE HUMANS.”

“Thanks, Pap’.” Undyne said with a gentle smile, before carrying her stuffs to said room. As for Frisk, they were explaining to Swan what had happened.

“I didn’t know spaghetti could be that dangerous… But it was fun!” The child laughed. Still Swan couldn’t help but be worried about Undyne sleeping under the same roof; both he and Frisk still had bruises from their fight with her. It was only natural for fear to be still present, especially at such a young age. Reading their mind, Frisk caught his attention before signing.

“ _Don’t worry. I will not let you get hurt_.”

“ _Me neither_.” Swan signed back before pointing at the odd colour of Frisk’s bang. “What happened to your hair?”

“Ketchup.” Frisk grimaced, making their brother laugh. “I guess I will need another bath now…”

 

And so time passed and one week of cohabitation with Undyne was already over when the recent happiness reigning in the house got perturbed when one day, the fish monster came back with a dreadful look on her face. Feeling that something was wrong, Sans send the two kids play in Papyrus’ room while he took his friend to the kitchen.

“hey pal’, what’s the matter? You look like a fish out of its tank.”

“Sans, enough jokes for now, Asgore is coming.” Undyne said while dropping on a chair, head leading against her hand. “He came to see me at work and said he wanted to have a cup of tea with me.”

“shit…” Sans said, glancing at the stairs were the shadows of the two kiddos were reflecting on the wall. They must have heard it. “fine, don’t panic. i’m just gonna teleport with the kids and-“

TOC TOC TOC

“Sans? Undyne? Is anyone home ? »

They were in troubles again. In big troubles, even considering the King himself was here, only separated from them by a door. They were going to have a bad time…

 


	17. Chapter 16: Around a cup of tea

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, I wasn't able to have this chapter proof readed and I apologise in advance to you guys! Hope you will still enjoy your reading~

There was no time left. Sans threw a glance at the stairs were the kids were hiding and he heard them locking themselves in Papyrus's room. Wise but vain; Asgore knew the smell of humans and it will not take him long to detect them if they stayed here. There were only one choice left; bringing them somewhere safe. To someone he could trust.

Whispering at Undyne to open the window while he took care of the kids, Sans teleported and reappeared in front of them. They were sitting behind the bed with terrified expression, gripping each other tightly. Feeling his chest clenched, Sans took their hand and told them to count to three until they arrived. When Frisk opened their eyes, they instantly recognised Grillby's place. It was empty for now since it wasn't open until 6pm, but Grillby was already working behind his bar, raising an interrogative eyebrow at his sudden guests. Smiling nervously, Sans pushed the humans towards the stools. 

" sorry 'bout that pal, but the situation is too hot to handle for me if they are home now. think you can keep an eye on them for me?" Sans asked and his expression was such that Grillby felt like he could only agree with only mid complain. Reassured, Sans hurried to teleport back home where Asgore was already sitting in the kitchen with Undyne, a steamy cup of tea between his large paws. When he saw Sans, a bright smile crossed his face as he stood up to shake his hand. 

“Sans! It's been a while since I last saw you!" The King said with a warm, deep voice.

"hey asgore. sorry for not letting you in faster, had forgotten something at grillby's." He lied, frowning as Undyne snorted obnoxiously while exchanging a glance with Asgore. The monster sat back and invited Sans to do the same.

"I heard that Grillby and you were good friends. I'm glad you find someone who makes you happy." He said and a blush ran to Sans' skull as he chuckled nervously, tugging on his shirt.

"we, huh, aren't that kind of good friends yet." He mumbled with a smile to hide his sudden self-consciousness. Did Undyne distract the king with gossips about his romantic life? That wasn't going to go unpaid... "i guess our friendship is as eggscellent as undyne and alphys."

"Wha-" Undyne began, her eye opened wide as she turned red and Asgore chuckled.

"I'm glad to see both of you in such a good company." He said, eyes lightening with genuine affection for the two monsters sitting in front of him. “However, I have something serious to discuss about with you, Undyne. Alone, if I may.

The sudden seriousness of the king made Sans feel nervous and he exchanged a glance with the fish monster before excusing himself with a fake smile. Left alone, the king leaned closer to his friend with a sombre expression as he took her hand.

“Undyne, as the captain of the Royal Guard there’s something I must inform you of. You see, I’ve heard rumours lately that preoccupied me.”

“Tch, gossips are never something to take seriously down there.” Undyne snorted but calmed down as her king frowned. “Asgore, what’s up? You never took rumours seriously before.”

“This time is different. I have every reason to believe that humans fell into the Underground. I received anonymous letters telling me about two children that wandered in Snowdin and when I visited waterfall, I heard the echo flowers talking about it.”

“I see…” Undyne mumbled, avoiding her friend’s gaze. She felt like a child lying to their parents; Asgore was more than just her king and she wished she could reveal the truth to him and give away the two punks. But betraying them would mean betraying Papyrus, her best friend. “What do you plan to do about it?” She asked and Asgore sighed, rubbing his eyes tiredly.

“I hoped you would help me to capture them, my friend. Not just you and the Royal Guard, but I considered asking the service of Lady Muffet and Mettaton. And what about your friend, Papyrus?”

“No.” Undyne said, shaking her head with a grimace. “I’m sorry Asgore but Pap’ is out of question. You’ve met him before; he would never be able to catch anyone, let alone a child.”

Silence fell as they both stare out by the window, lost in thought. Snow had begun to fall over the town of Snowdin and you could hear the children playing outside. Taking a sip of her tea, Undyne tried to figure out how they were all going to avoid getting caught. After all, she knew Muffet’s aversion for humans and Mettaton would do anything for fame. Besides, if Asgore learnt about her treason, god knew what was going to happen to her…

“Undyne?” Asgore asked and the fish pulled a smile on her face to reassure him.

“I’m gonna help ya, Asgore. Don’t sweat it!”

“I knew I could count on you, my friend.” He smiled and Undyne felt the guilt crawling under her skin. So much for two humans.

XXX

“Do you think he will be back soon?” Frisk asked, balancing their legs as they sat on a bar stool. If Grillby’s place was pretty awesome when filled with customers, finding themselves with the mute bartender was quite boring after a while. Helping the fire element to clean up the bar before the first customers of the evening arrived, Swan didn’t realise Frisk was talking until their sibling waved their arms to catch his attention.

“ _Yes_?” He signed and Frisk repeated their question with a bored sigh at the end. Realising the two children will not stay obedient for too long at this rate, Grillby did a”follow me” move and leaded them in the storage room where an old tv was stocked. Struggling to turn it on, he finally succeed and put “ **Mettaton II: Return of the Humans** ” the movie to occupy them until Sans came back.

Looking over the two kids reminded him of when Lilibell was younger and he used to baby sit her. Feeling nostalgic, he shook his head and went back to his duties. He barely had the time to blink that suddenly Sans was standing here, looking morose. Raising an eyebrow, the bartender got a bottle of ketchup from a cupboard and nodded toward a seat.

Sitting, Sans pulled his head between his arms with a grunt; he didn’t had the strength to pretend everything was alright in front of his best friend.

“where are the two kiddos?” he asked and Grillby pointed at the storage door. “good. hope they didn’t bother you.”

A thin grin appeared on the bartender’s face as he lean closer, enveloping Sans into a comforting warmness.

“They were ok.” He said with a hoarse, deep voice that send shivers to Sans’ bones. “Now, what’s eating you?”

“it’s… complicated buddy. info might be too hot to handle if you get involved more than that.” Sans sighed, a light blush covering his cheekbones when Grillby covered his hands with his and gently squeezed them. He seemed to be saying “it’s alright, I’m here.”

God did he missed having someone to rely on, even if it was just to keep the kids occupied. Staring into Grillby’s eyes, Sans began to slowly close the gap between them. Oh, how tempting it was to stop resisting and finally be selfish-

“Grillby, I think the tv is…oh.” Frisk said and freeze with their hand still on the handle, eyes wide open and their jaw dropping. “I’m so sorry, I’ll be back later.” And the kid hurried to close the door back with a red face. But it was too late, the moment had passed and the two adults stood up with mixed feelings.

“I, huh, will see if I can bring them back home.” Sans said before pulling his hoodie on and teleporting. To think he has been this close…


	18. Chapter 17 - He left

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I genuinely apology for the upcoming chapter. Don't hesitate to tell me your reactions and thoughts!

Since he fell into the Underground, Swan hadn’t pray. It wasn’t that he has lost his faith in God; it’s just he didn’t have to pray to be adopted anymore. First with Toriel then with the skeleton brothers, he had found himself with a new even though unusual family.

But tonight, for the first time since the fall, he kneeled and prayed. He prayed for everyone to be safe and for them to forgive him for what he was going to do. He prayed to be determined till the end and never let fear get the best of him. At least, he prayed for Frisk to be ok with their new family.

Floating next to him in a dark cloud, new cracks visible on his skull, Gaster was waiting silently, like a deform shadow. Opening his eyes, Swan gave him a questioning look and the ghost nodded. It was time.

“ _I’m ready.”_ Swan signed as he stood, taking the ghost hands in his. Gaster stared at the frail boy one last time and clacked his fingers. In front of them, a door materialised. Swan swallowed hard, shaking a little and then opened it.

On the other side, the King’s castle was waiting.

 

Xxxx

Frisk stopped moving, suddenly alert. Around them children were playing dodgeball and that’s when they realised it must have been a dream; monsters didn’t play it underground. Narrowing their eyes, they recognised a few faces from the Orphanage. Tom and Adam bullying the poor Nina, Big Bill eating as usual, Dorian throwing the ball… and Chara. Frisk frowned. What were they doing in their own memories?

Zach suddenly walked through them as if Frisk was only a ghost, which made them feel uncomfortable. On the other side of the playground, Chara waved at them to come closer and Frisk obeyed, a creeping feeling twisting inside them.

“You need to wake up.” Chara said once Frisk was close enough to hear them.

“Why?” They asked, untrusty and Chara began to play with their sweater with a frown.

“Your idiotic brother is acting without you. I refuse to let him have all the fun.” Chara said again and Frisk froze before looking around worryingly. Where was Swan? He always was in their memories. Chara grabbed their sleeves and pulled on it to catch back Frisk attention.

“You need to wake up before it’s too late. He is getting closer every second now.”

“Closer to what?” Frisk asked, panicked. “Chara! Answer me!”

But Chara was gone and slowly the dream began to melt around Frisk into a dark puddle that began to creep toward them, gluing their legs to the ground. Screaming, the child tried to free themselves, in vain. The black pudding was growning on them, up their chest, into their mouth, chocking them. The dream was now a nightmare and as terrified as they were, Frisk still had time to hear Chara’s voice telling them it was the only way to woke up before they opened their eyes, screaming Swan’s name.

Frenetically glancing around while panting heavily, Frisk realised they were now alone on the couch with no sign of their brother. Feeling like someone had pushed them into icy waters, Frisk jumped on their trembling feet and began to run from room to room, looking after Swan. As they reached Sans’ bedroom, they began to knock as hard as possible on the door, screaming the skeleton’s name but nobody answered.

‘ _You have no time left._ ’ Chara said inside their mind. ‘ _Your stupid brother is gone and it would be too late if you don’t hurry up_!’

“Why should I trust you?” Frisk said while packing Swan’s bag with bandages and water in case he was lost somewhere. Images of their brother crying and wounded somewhere was filling them with fear. Somehow, they knew Chara wasn’t lying. “Where did he go?”

‘ _The fool decided to surrounded to Asgore in order to protect you._ ’ Chara finally said and Frisk stopped eyes wide. No. Impossible.  Not Swan, the small, brave but fearful Swan. Clenching their teeth, Frisk hurried to write a word for the skeleton brothers to know about it and rushed outside, guided by Chara. No matter how risky it was, they will not give up on Swan. He was their brother, their family.

“Wait for me, Swan.” Frisk whispered, the cold air of Snowdin running through their hair. “I will protect you.”

Xxx

Swan was scared, more than he wanted to show in front of the ghost floating at his side. They were walking within what seemed to be an old church deserted decades ago, dust floating at each step he took. It was eerily but not enough to calm him down. Would Gaster let him pray one last time? He asked the ghost and Gaster finally nodded, but showed three bone fingers. He only had three minutes. Swan did the gesture of blowing a kiss to thank him and kneeled in front of a stained glass window, eyes closed. Floating by his side, Gaster felt once again feelings he hadn’t felt for years.

There was something touching about how innocent the boy looked like, kneeling in the light and dust. He was like a saint or an angel which fate was to save monsters. Gaster knew it; Swan’s self-sacrificing was the key to everyone’s salvation. Their only hope to see the sky once more.

Suddenly, bells began to ring somewhere inside the church and somehow, Swan knew it was time. But as he opened his eyes, a soft humming was heard at the other side of the church. Raising his head, Swan discovered a huge monster that reminded him of Toriel with his fluffy white fur and his goat like face. However this one was broader and had golden hair and beard. When they eyes met, the monster stopped and looked quite surprised before realisation hit him when he recognised Swan as a human. When he spoke, his voice was quiet and noble and it was obvious he was talking to Swan as Gaster had vanished at some point.

“I didn’t expect someone to come here. Were you praying, Child?”

Swan nodded, all fear gone. He knew he was kneeling in front of King Asgore but something about him was calming and melancholic. Asgore shook his head, looking apologetic and Swan wished he could hug the monster.

“I so badly want to say “Would you like a cup of tea?” “Asgore said, avoiding Swan’s gaze. “But…”

Swan had to die. He knew it since the beginning. It has been obvious since the ghost apparition, somehow. A feeling, like a premonition of his upcoming end. He never told the truth to Frisk because deep inside, he had hoped to be wrong. But lately, everybody at home has been so scared to be discovered and to be punished for betrayal that Swan hasn’t been able to stand it anymore. His friends, his family, Frisk… they all deserved to be free and happy. The King came closer and brought an heavy paw to Swan’s shoulder and the boy felt how shaky the monster was.

“It will be alright.” Asgore said even though his eyes were saying the opposite. “I… see it like a visit to the dentist.”

But Swan couldn’t remember the last time he went to get his teeth healed. The only thing he could think of was his sibling and new found family. Swan was actually grateful to have known one before dying. He just wished he had live longer with them.

“Come, Child. Let’s go to somewhere nicer.” Asgore said, taking the quiet’s boy hand, such a tiny hand!, before leading him to the throne room. He wouldn’t kill someone in a Church, even a deserted one. The next room was filled with yellow flowers and Swan felt the need to cry. It was gorgeous and yet so sad to stand here. It was the last time he will enjoy such beauty. Turning to face the king, he realised the monster’s eyes were actually teary.

“I’m sorry, boy.” Asgore said and Swan knew it was the truth. “I wished there would have been another solution. Are you ready?”

Was he? Swan didn’t know. He was 10 years old and was going to sacrifice his own life to save many others. Was any boy his age ready for such an action? Clenching his hands around his swan brooch to stay determined till the end, the boy nodded. It was time. And so Asgore raised his hand and pulled the human’s soul out of his body. It was the tiniest heart he has ever seen and the king felt the guilt of his action crushing him. It just hit him how the boy had come on his own and not because the Royal Guard had caught him.

“I’m sorry, child.” Asgore said and Swan smiled as bright as he could, tears slowly running along his round cheeks. “Thank you for your sacrifice.” The king said as he materialised his trident.

Swan closed his eyes and thought one last time of Frisk. Oh, how he will miss them.

The second after, Asgore attacked and through the intense pain of his souls beginning to shatter as he fell, Swan saw a familiar face running towards him and smiled. Frisk had been at his side until the very end, after all.

Then, everything turned black. He had stay determined till the end. 


	19. Chapter 18: Ending the World

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for this un- beta readed chapter. I also hope you will take pleasure in reading it!

As they ran toward the castle, Frisk got lucky enough to bump into Undyne and Papyrus and as she explained the situation to them while still running, the two of them called Sans to warn him about the situation. Guided by Chara and their friends, Frisk reached Hotland when Sans teleported in front of them with a short, yellow lizard that seemed to already know about Frisk somehow. Thanks to Sans’teleportation power, the two of them decided to go forward faster and the others will join them at their own rhythm.

A shiver ran through Frisk’s spine as they reappeared inside the Church where they died many times while fighting each other. Even Sans seemed uncomfortable but said nothing and instead they rushed toward the throne room, just in time to see the Asgore’s attack. Screaming Swan’s name, Frisk felt their head buzzing and his sight becoming blurry as they kneeled next to their brother.

His soul was shattered in a few pieces and looking paler every seconds. Frisk heard voices all around them, some screaming and arguing. But they didn’t care; the only thing they could focus on was Swan’s pulse becoming weaker and weaker. He was dying. Soon, nothing but a corpse will be left of the boy who spoke in hands.

Blood was pulsing through their head loudly as hate and anger grew inside them. He recognized the feeling as the one Chara had felt while Asriel had been attacked, many decades ago. Both of them losing a brother. Chara was now talking too, but Frisk didn’t understand the words. Frenetically, they began to take every pieces of the shattered soul into their smile hands, whispering “don’t go, don’t go” even as Toriel, how did she came here?, picked them and hug them tightly against her chest, crying.

No. No no no no no-

“NO!!” Frisk screamed with all their anger, their black eyes wide opened and menacing as he stare at Asgore, features deformed by hate. The King took a step back and glanced at all his friends staring at him accusingly and guiltily. Why? No one but Toriel had stood up against him before. Why now? Why now that he got the seventh soul?

Frisk was now fighting against Toriel to free themselves and tried to bite Sans as the skeleton took the fragments of Swan’s soul away from them to put them back against Swan’s chest that which breath were getting worriedly slower and weaker.

“hey kiddo.” he said, an hollow smile on his face. “come on, handsome. you need to wake up.”

But Swan didn’t move and his soul shattered into more pieces. Papyrus kneeled by Sans’ side and shook the boy’s shoulder gently.

“SWAN, PLEASE. I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL COOK FOR YOU IF YOU OPEN YOUR EYES NOW.” he said, but the boy didn’t obeyed.

“hoi punk, don’t pretend to be dead! Not you!” Undyne screamed, Alphys clenching her hand in an helpless move. She knew Undyne was aware nothing would stop the process of a soul slowly dying. Herself had did so many research on the topic, leading to monstrous experiments she was ashamed of.

As for Toriel, she slowly stood up and gently pushed Frisk away before walking to Asgore and after a moment, slapped him in the face, her eyes burning with spite.

“How does it feel?” She asked while tearing down. “How does it feel, to have killed one of my children? You think you’re better than those humans who trapped us many years ago? You’re not any better than them, Asgore!” She screamed and the King bowed his head, ashamed. He knew that already.

“Tori, I just wanted to free us all-“

“You murdered my child!” Toriel yelled, punching him in the chest before falling on her knees. The former queen knew as well as everybody else that soon there would be nothing left of Swan’s soul unless one of them absorbed it.

Suddenly an hollow laugh echoed in the room and roots appeared from nowhere and tied them all to the ground.

“What the heck?!” Undyne yelled, tripping and hitting the ground with a painful throb to the head. More vines appeared from the darkness and their spins bit into the monsters. Frisk barely have time to collect Swan’s broken soul before vines tied them up too. Out of the shadow suddenly appeared a tiny faced flower that smiled brightly at the chaos it just made.

“Howdie, you idiots!” It sang as it came closer, six vines holding up the six humans souls’ containers. “Oops, were you morning this fool’s death? Well, as you fought I had no difficulties to seal the human souls heeheehee!”

“You!” Toriel growled, “You’re the monster from the Ruins!”

“I’m Flowey, Flowey the flower. I can’t believe how easy it has been, to stop you all!” Flowey said, his face changing into a creepier one that made Frisk shivers.  “It’s all thanks to those humans, actually. You loved them, cared about them and ran to save them. Idiots! Now, not only do I possess those human souls but soon I will have yours too!”

Undyne struggled harder and began to bleed where the spins bite her arms. Papyrus spoke to Sans, asking what was going to happen but Sans said nothing, his eye socket flashing blue from his burning anger. He knew this damn flower. He saw him before, during a former reset.

“Now, all your souls are mine!”

And suddenly, a huge flash blinded everyone before all source of light got swallowed by darkness. Narrowing their eyes, Frisk tatted the ground and finally reached Swan’s cold hand. Shivering and broken, Frisk didn’t realised at first that something was happening a few step above. A child that oddly looks like the King and Toriel is standing in an eerie light. Frisk only noticed him when he spoke and when they did, a chill ran through their spin. It was impossible; Asriel Dreemur was killed by humans decades ago. Yet the child standing in front of them must have been real.

‘Asriel!’ Chara’s voice screamed emotionally in Frisk’s mind, ‘How?’

But Asriel couldn’t hear them and before Frisk could say anything, the child grew much bigger and scarier in a cruel laugh. He was terrifying, and Frisk embraced Swan’s dying body against their chest in a protective way.

“Howdie, Frisk.” Asriel said, his voice echoing into the nothingness surrounding them. The way he said their name was spitted like venom. “Would you play one last game with me before I destroy everything in this world? Though I admit, I don’t care about destroying this world anymore.” Asriel sighed, taking a step closer and Frisk gently laid Swan’s body before standing up between him and the monster.

“Then why are you doing this?” Frisk asked. “Those are people’s life! You can’t do as you please with them!”

“Why? Because all your lovely bonding is disgusting and dull.” Asriel said and Frisk froze as a sword materialised in each of his paws. “All your memory, your so called family… I will erase everything. And then, you’ll come back to play like the past times!”

Frisk felt nauseous at the last words. So it was true; they did killed everyone many times before. Something beat inside their clenched hand and when Frisk opened their fist, they were surprised to see Swan’s soul fragments shining and throbbing like a real heart. The battle wasn’t lose, not yet. Not as long as Swan was still breathing. Suddenly determined, Frisk rested the fragment on the boy’s chest and kissed his forehead before standing defiantly in front of Asriel. Inside them, Chara seemed too tormented to be happy about the upcoming fight.

“I will not let you do destroy my family, Asriel.” Frisk said as their soul materialised in front of them.

“We will see about it.” Asriel said, his threatening smile showing his shining fangs. And then, he attacked.


	20. Chapter 19: Gaster

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're reaching the end of this story soon. I hope you will appreciate this chapter too as a major twist happens at the end of it. Have a good time reading it!

Gaster had made many mistakes during his life. As a scientist it was inevitable. He never regretted them though as it always lead him to the solution, another hypothesis. Things got complicated when he did the mistake to emotionally tie himself to two of his creations. Soon, he gave them names and raise the two boys like his sons. Papyrus was too small and fragile, always giggling. But Sans? Sans was smart, he knew it from the start. The boy was quiet and only smiled to his brother. A perfect assistant and so once he had grew up a few years, Gaster had took him as an assistant with Alphys, a nervous young girl that was as bright as she was chatty.

Sans surpassed his expectations and Gaster became careless, praising the boy and giving him more responsibilities. That was his first mistake. The second had been to get irrationally angry at Sans one day as they walked along the Core. The young skeleton had made a small mistake but after long, sleepless night Gaster had snapped at him and said things no parents should. The look of utter distress on Sans’ face had made him regret it, but as he tried to walk closer Sans had pushed him away and that was the end; Tripping on his coat from the violent reaction, Gaster had fallen into the Core under Sans’ horrified gaze. The face of his son was the last thing he saw before the boiling liquid swallowed him.

Nobody came to save him from his death. Nobody, but the River Person. When his eyes opened again, Gaster was lying on a boat conducted by the mysterious monster. But Gaster was no more; the scientist he once was had died during the accident that day. Now, he was merely a hollow reflection of what he used to be, his bones dusty and cracked, his body as consistent as a thick dark smoke. Gaster was no more and so he vanished into the Underground, living in a secret room that only appeared on his command. He never spoke to the River Person again.

From the shadow, he observed. He saw human children falling one by one and being murdered. He could admit, the death of the little ballerina had stroke a chord inside him but he forgot about it; ghost didn’t feel anything and that was what he was now. A ghost, a shadow lurking in the corner and seeing things changing Underground. He was disappointed though when Sans left his scientist job behind. Pity, really.

And then, the seventh human fell. And things became dark, darker and yet darker as this one had a terrifying power: they could reset timelines and everybody but he and Sans would forget about it, living the same days over and over, dying painfully once more. And nobody could do anything to save their loved ones. Nobody but him. And so he did; he used an intense part of what was left of his power to materialise above the surface. The barrier stopped monsters, but he wasn’t one anymore. He was something else. He sacrificed his right eye to travel so far and finally found the Orphanage. Then, he observed.

And slowly, a plan was born inside his genius mind. Frisk was dangerous for the monsters and he had to find a shield to protect them. And that Shield was Swan, the boy who spoke in hands. It was obvious that Frisk would never let anyone hurt them, let alone themselves. And so Gaster acted. He convinced the young boy to go to Mont Ebott and save everyone and Frisk followed. The plan was perfect.

But like many experiment, the unpredictable can happen. And in this case, it was for Gaster to get attached to the timid boy. He hid in the shadow, keeping an eye on him and caring more than he should have. When the boy almost died on a bed of trash, Gaster had felt revolted and disgusted. He wouldn’t have allowed it to happen, not when he had spent such an amount of power luring the boy here. He lied to himself and pretended it wasn’t because he liked the frail human.

But now that the boy was slowly dying in front of him, Gaster knew the lie couldn’t life any longer. He will do anything to save the boy because he deserved to see the sunlight once more. His time hadn’t come whereas Gaster should have died a long time ago.

Glancing at Frisk bravely fighting Asriel, Gaster took a deep breath and his body extended to swallow Swan. He will save him. It was their only hope.

 

 

When he opened his eyes, Swan saw nothing and fear grew inside his chest. Was he dead? Had he been judged and send to Hell? But it couldn’t be; in this endless darkness, he was alone. He had no notion of time, no landmarks. He could be dead or just unconscious. At least, he wasn’t cold.

Suddenly, Gaster was here. Swan was glad to have some company during his last moments. Dying alone was terrifying. The ghost kneeled in front of him and touched his chest before pulling gently and Swan gasped as his soul, or what was left of it, appeared between them. The heart was shattered and it was obvious some parts were already gone. As his fingers lingered on it, another fragment vanished.

“ _I’m dying_.” He signed to Gaster, and the ghost nodded. “ _Frisk must be angry._ ”

“ _There’s another solution_.” The scientist signed before quickly adding “ _But it demands a sacrifice_.”

“ _From whom?_ ” Swan asked, suddenly nervous.

“ _From us both_.”

 

 

Frisk was growing tired, not used to dodging and attacking anymore. Chara helped them but even with their help, it was obvious than soon, it will be over.

“Once I reset, we’ll meet again Chara!” Asriel said as he threw fireballs shaped like stars at them. He had begun to call Frisk by the dead child’s name a few minutes ago, lost in his madness. “And we will play forever!”

“I won’t let you, Asriel!” Frisk shouted as they nearly got touched by one of the fire stars, feeling the heat close to their face. Their breathe was coming hard and shaky, their legs barely supporting them anymore. Suddenly, they fell on their knees. That was it. It was over now, Asriel had won and  Frisk hadn’t been able to protect their friends and family. Suddenly quiet, Asriel walked toward them with a dull expression on his face.

“So, that’s the end already?” he said as he raised his sword before a huge smile crossed his face. “Oh well, we’ll do better next time. See you after death, Chara!” And then he lowered the blade.

 

But nobody got hurt.

A bright shield appeared between Frisk and Asriel, protecting the child from the murderous attack. Eyes wide, the two of them turned their face and were blinded by a sudden mass of light raising into the air where Swan’s body used to be.

“What the…” Asriel began, taking a step backward as tears rolled down Frisk’s chin. Swan. It must have been him, saving them once more. A sudden flash happened before the light dissipated and revealed their brother. But he wasn’t the same anymore.

Flying above them with his new pair of wings, Swan was ready. He will put an end to every monster’s suffering. Today, he will beat Asriel and break the barrier. He wasn’t human anymore; he was more than that. He wasn’t a monster either.

No, now that Gaster had sacrificed his own life to fuse with him, Swan was something entirely new. Touching the Delta rune carved into his forehead, he landed next to Frisk and helped them to stand up with his usual warm smile. His eyes were as kind as ever, but now they were shining a warm honey colour. That’s when Frisk realised he was neither human nor monster now.

 

_He was an angel._


	21. Chapter 20: Saving their Friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!   
> So, TBWSIH is coming to an end as it is the last chapter of my fic. Next update will be the Epilogue of the story already! Wow, I'm a bit emotional at that thought. I never believed I would have come so far with it! Hope this final chapter will please you guys :)

_There is a prophecy. The Angel... The One Who Has Seen The Surface... They will return._

_And the underground will go empty._

 

In one of their previous timeline in the Underground, Frisk had read those glyphs on the walls of Waterfall. They remember thinking that they were this so called Angel, as they had emptied it by killing everyone under Chara's control. But now, they realized how silly it has been. Angels were holy creatures.

Frisk had even a creature of sin, taking lives without showing remorse until now. And it was all because of Swan. Small, timid Swan who was now standing between them and a shocked Asriel, his white wings forming a shield for Frisk.

"You!" Asriel growled, his eyes shining dangerously. "You keep wasting everything!"

The goat monster threw more fireballs towards the child but an invisible shield protected Swan as his soul materialized. Frisk felt a lump in their throat at the sign of it; the crimson colour was the same as usual, but now the heart was inverted.

Swan wasn't human anymore. The boy turned his head and smiled to Frisk, taking their hand to put them back on their feet. Instantly, Frisk felt a peaceful warmness inside them, growing and growing until they smiled too.

"Determined to save everyone?" They asked and Swan nodded before the two of them turned to face Asriel, eyes shining with their determination. They were ready.

"Let's do this." They said. The second after, Asriel attacked with a furious roar.

 

Fighting him was easier now that hope was back. Even Chara seemed determined to help them, knowing when their brother would attack and how to dodge.

"We need to take back everyone's souls." Frisk said to Swan as the two of them got protected by Swan's wings. "I will create a diversion, and you will try to call everyone's back. Alright?"

Swan nodded and Frisk took a deep breathe, closing their eyes to visualize Chara inside their mind.

"Chara, I need to know if I can trust you." They asked and Chara laughed dryly. "I'm serious. I need you to take control of my body and speak to Asriel."

'You're kidding?' Chara said, eyes wide open. 'Why would you do that? I could use you to ally with him for all I know.'

A soft smile grew on Frisk's lips. "You wouldn't, not anymore. You want to save him too, right? Then help us. Please."

Chara stayed quiet for a moment, playing with the locket around their neck. Saving Asriel... finally, they held their hand towards Frisk and without a thought, they took it.

 

"Asriel."

The goat monster stopped, his blade a few inch away from Frisk's soul. He knew that voice.

"Chara!!!" He shouted, his voice suddenly similar to a young boy. "I knew you would come back!"

"As if I could let an idiot like you taking care of himself." Chara snorted, throwing a glance at Swan and nodding discreetly. "And what's with that look?"

"Pretty cool, huh?" Asriel said, his smile showing his shining fangs as he opened his arms, forgetting about the Angel. Knowing it was time to act, Swan run towards the monster and reached for his artificial soul. Then, everything was black again for a few seconds.

Blinking, Swan slowly distinguished silhouettes surrounded by an odd mist. Walking closer, he recognized the first one as Toriel.

" _Mum_." He signed, but Toriel shook her head.

"I'm not your mother, My Child. I wasn't able to protect you and the others." She said before sobbing. Heart clenching, Swan embraced her in his tiny arms, his wings tickling her sprout and making her chuckle.

'It will be alright.' Swan wished to say. 'We are going to save you, mum'.

His new souk began to throb, sending a smoothing wave towards Toriel who blinked and stopped sobbing, looking puzzled.

"My child...?" She said, back to her senses. Smiling, Swan took her hand and leaded her to the second silhouette. Here, Asgore was muttering to himself, holding his head in his large paws. Toriel's expression hardened but Swan tugged on her sleeves then nodded toward the King. She had to talk him back to his sense. He would only listen to her, Swan knew it.

Leaving the former Queen with Asgore, the boy walked to the next monsters. Undyne and Alphys were standing back to back, avoiding each other's gaze. Swan knew the lizard woman from Gaster's memories he gained as the ghost fused with him. Coming closer, he waved his hand but the scientist didn't look at him and brought her legs to her chest instead. Feeling sorry for the monster, Swan turned to Undyne instead. However the monster pushed him away, showing her teeth.

"All humans will die!" She growled and Swan used his wings to protect himself from her spears. He signed to her to stop and she seemed confused for one second, something striking a chord in the angel's appearance.

"Stop it!" She growled again, though her attack is weaker now and Swan managed to take a step closer before using the Fish sign he used to call her. Realisation hit her as Undyne gained back her memories and smirk before playing with Swan's hair.

"Thanks, punk. I'll take care of Alphys, go find Papyrus!"

Glad to see his friend's back, Swan ran towards the tall skeleton who took a step back, shaking his skull.

"I'M SORRY HUMAN, BUT I CAN'T BE YOUR FRIEND." Papyrus said, arming himself with a bone.

Swan wasn't intimidated and took a step closer, not trying to defend himself. It seemed to surprise the skeleton who spoke again.

"I NEED TO CAPTURE A HUMAN. THEN, EVERYONE WILL LOVE ME!!"

Swan signed " _I love you_!" And Papyrus began to recognize him, his weapon vanishing.

"I... OF COURSE YOU LOVE ME! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, LOVE YOU TOO HUMAN!!!" And then he embraced Swan's into his bony arms. But there was no time to waste; Swan still had Sans to save and he could feel Asriel struggling to get rid of him.

 

Sans was standing far from the others, as if he unconsciously decided to distance himself. But as he walked closer to the short skeleton, a barrier of bones stood between Swan and Sans.

"don't get closer kiddo, or you'll have a bad time."

A chill ran through Swan's spine. Sans' despair was so deep that he wasn’t sure he would be able to touch him. Remembering the skeleton talked sign language too, he decided to try it.

" _Sans. It's me. It's Swan. I'm here to save you_."

"liar." Sans signed back, his eye sockets pitchy black. “you’re him, right? you came back to haunt me."

And without any warning, Sans threw his bones attack at Swan who barely managed to avoid it. A blue flame was burning inside the skeleton's left eye socket now.

" _Sans. I'm not him. I'm not your dad_." Swan tried again and something seemed to break inside Sans has he teared up a bit.

"no, you can't be. because I killed him. I.killed.him."

And with a sob, Sans fell on his knees, holding his skulls between his fingers. Heartbroken, Swan walked closer and kneeled next to him, bringing him into a hug and wrapping his wings around them.

"I'm such a disa _bone_ tment." Sans said with a humourless laugh. “pap’, dad, grillby... I can't take care of those I love. I can't even protect you, kiddo." He said and Swan shook his head.

" _That's false. Without you, Frisk and I would be dead."_ He signed. " _You saved us_."

"I..." Sans began before Papyrus' voice cut him as the skeleton approached.

"COME ON, SANS. YOU PROTECTED ME SINCE I WAS BORN, I KNOW IT. YOU'RE THE GREATEST BROTHER I, PAPYRUS, COULD HAVE WISHED FOR."

"pap'..." Sans said before rubbing his face with his sleeves and smiling at his brother. "you're _egg_ scellent yourself, pap'. and you too, handsome."

Swan smiled before turning to all his friends and family reunited around him.

" _Let's go home_." He signed. " _Frisk is waiting for us."_

 

Once he realized both Chara and Frisk tricked him, Asriel had gone berserk and dark wings appeared on his back as his attacks became more ferocious. Frisk silently begged for Swan to hurry, their skin bleeding where the monster's claws wounded them. They wouldn't be able to last any longer and as a violent attack hit them on the head, Frisk lose consciousness the moment Asriel disappeared into a flash of white. Swan must have succeed, they thought as their eyes closed.

Swan was left alone into the darkness, facing a sobbing monster child. Walking closer, he thought it must be Asriel's real form.

"I'm sorry." Asriel said, rubbing his paws against his swollen eyes. "I just... I didn't want to be alone anymore."

Swan said nothing but gently held his hand to the other child who seemed surprised before a soft smile crossed his face.

"You came to save me too, right? You're much kinder than I am." Then he took Swan's hand and shook it. "Howdie, i'm Asriel."

Swan smiled and pointed at his brooch. Asriel snorted, looking quite amused.

"Swan? Is it your name? That's quite funny!.... ah, I really don't wanna go..." Asriel said, looking regretful. "But I have to, right? Soon I will turn into Flowey, and I don't want to face everyone in this form again. Will you keep it secret, Swan?"

The boy nodded and took Asriel's pinkie finger with his, to form a pinkie promise. Asriel remembered how he and Chara used to do the same, many decades ago.

"Thank you, Swan. Let me help you in return."

And before Swan could do anything, Asriel closed his eyes to reach the human souls he had absorbed and begged for their help.

"I will do it. I will destroy the barrier."

 

And so he did.


	22. Epilogue: Home and Safe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so here ends The Boy Who Spoke In Hands. I want to thanks everybody for their kudos and comments. Special thanks to Thefrenchbookworm for the amazing fanarts she drew of the fic. I hope you will all enjoy it until the final words... Thank you so much, everyone <3

The Orphanage had changed so much in three years, it was barely recognizable. Once the shock of the monsters coming to the surface and the adaptation to Swan’s angelic appearance was over, the nuns had welcomed those who wanted to join them into their community and agreed one year ago for orphans to be adopted by monster families. In exchange, Mettaton’s funded the restoration of the whole building with the Association he created once he became a world famous star.

At Mother Apollonia’s death, it was Toriel who was put in charge of the Orphanage. It wasn’t surprising as she had a natural motherly attitude and strong sense of rightfulness. She had last enough children in her life and could now take care of as many as she could without worrying for their lives.  As for Asgore, trying to redeem himself for his crimes, he abducted the throne and became a gardener. From time to time, you could see the huge monster playing with the children in the playground, looking refreshed and happy.

As for the monsters, half of them had decided to stay in the Underground until enough laws to protect them and give them equal rights have been passed. It was a tedious fight, but the former queen and king were optimistic. The world was changing and so where the minds. Proof was, Undyne had recently been given a P.E teacher job at the local school to her immense joy. As for her fiancée, Alphys has decided to take courses to become an animator. A path far different from her scientist job, but the nervous lizard had decided she had been through enough experiments for a life time.  

Papyrus… well, Papyrus was Papyrus. He was the same naive, kind and friendly skeleton but with more courage, as he had finally did the first step to ask Mettaton on a date. The famous robot had seemed pleased by the attention but a good warning from Sans had him to take their new relationship seriously. But no one was as seriously in love as Grillby and Sans.

And today was an important day for them both as it was their wedding day. With the Sisters help, the Orphanage’s garden had been prepared to hold the ceremony where everyone would be sure not to be bothered. Lilibell, crying during the whole thing, had been Grillby’s witness and Sans chose Swan, to no one surprise. It had been long and boring yet emotional and extremely pleasant, like any wedding. Mettaton shared almost as much tears as Lilibell and even Blooky smiled during the whole party, being in charge of the music with Syren.

Once everybody had been drunk enough or asleep, Frisk told Toriel they would go to bed and left the banquet table behind with a smile. They were pretty much the same as three years ago, except their hair were longer now, reaching their shoulders. Unlike the nuns, Toriel saw no problem for them to keep them as long as they wanted. Humming a soft melody they heard in Waterfall, Frisk stopped by the fountain and recognised Swan’s silhouette under the moonlight.

Oh, Swan. The boy had gone through so much himself while they were stuck in the Underground and yet he was as kind and determined as ever. Under the pale light of the moon, his wings seemed to shine, as white as a dove. He too had let his hair grow, the long curls braided for the occasion. When he first reached the surface and came back to the Orphanage, the nuns had kneel and prayed the Lord for this angel. Only Mother Apollonia had recognized in him the small baby abandoned at their door, ten years ago.

As if he had sense their presence somehow, the boy suddenly turned his face and gave Frisk a warm smile. His features were still soft but he did look older now. Was it because of the tattoo on his forehead or his golden eyes, something will forever make him look different from the boys his age. Maybe that’s why he was spending more time with monsters than humans after all. Bringing their hand to their mouth then lowering it a bit in a “ _hello_ ” sign, Frisk then sat next to their brother with a sigh. The day had been fun but exhausting. Yet, it was the first wedding they had taken part in and it will forever hold a special place in their hearts.

“ _They look nice together_.” Swan signed, his head resting on his knees. Nodding, Frisk began to play with the soft feathers before speaking.

“Yeah. You could say they are… _smocking_.” The teenager said with a wink before snorting under Swan’s judgmental glance before the boy is laughing too. Then they felt silent again until Frisk finally asked the question they thought about the whole day.

“Should we go and see him?”

Swan nodded and in a smooth move took Frisk into his arms and in a few flaps of his wings, the two of them found themselves flying above the Orphanage towards Mont Ebott. They passed through a few familiar faces down in the Underground but most of the monsters were either asleep or at the wedding. Finally they reached the Ruins and its familiar purple walls. They took a moment to stand still, remembering how everything began a few years ago before walking toward the middle of the flowerbed where a special flower was waiting for them with a pout.

“You are late, idiots!” was how Asriel greeted them. “I thought you forgot!”

“We will never forget you, silly.” Frisk said before kneeling and getting some candies out of their pockets. “Here, for you. I remember you said you liked those.”

“Ah. Huh. Thanks, I guess.” Asriel mumbled and for a moment he looked exactly like the young boy he used to be before turning into Flowey. It had become a secret routine for Frisk and Swan to come back there from time to time and entertain the lonely monster. He might have no soul anymore, but Asriel had refused to get back to the surface, saying he had to pay for what he did. Swan had disagreed and argued that he already helped to free everyone by breaking the barrier, in vain.

“Oh, do you want to see pictures from the wedding? Everyone is on it!” Frisk added, going through their phone with the sunflower watching above their shoulders. Standing a few steps away, Swan smiled and decided to give the two of them some time alone. Like Asriel and Chara did, the flower had an odd bond with Frisk even if it was still awkward for now.

Swan wasn’t jealous; Asriel had lost his family and Swan had gained one. Everyone was a part of it: Toriel and Asgore, Undyne and Alphys, Papyrus and Mettaton, Sans and Grillby, Monster Kid that he appreciated more than he would admit and Frisk.

He, the boy who spoke in hands, finally had done it. He belonged somewhere. He was now home and safe.


End file.
